Security forces suspect BRN behind Su-ngai Kolok gold robbery

Col Yutthanam Petchmuang, spokesman for the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) Region 4 Forward Command, said on Monday that armed men stormed a gold shop inside a Big C department store in Su-ngai Kolok district, Narathiwat, on Sunday evening. 

One soldier, Sgt Burisorn Radachai of the Santisuk Task Force, was injured while attempting to retrieve his weapon from his car to stop the assailants. He has been taken to Su-ngai Kolok Hospital and is now in stable condition.

Lt Gen Norathip Poinok, commander of the Fourth Army Area, expressed sympathy for the injured officer and affected business owners, saying the act was intended to harm local stability and economic confidence.

Authorities reported multiple coordinated incidents that occurred shortly before and after the robbery:

• 6.30pm: Territorial defence volunteers found a 15kg gas cylinder suspected to be a bomb near a U-turn in front of the Su-ngai Kolok Provincial Electricity Authority.
   
• 6.33pm: Several masked suspects were seen firing into the air to spread panic.
   
• 6.36pm: The gold shop “Yaowarat Krungthep” inside Big C was robbed, with the attackers fleeing with an unspecified amount of gold.
   
• 6.47pm: Sgt Burisorn was shot with both a pistol and a 5.56mm rifle.
   
• 6.55pm and 7.45pm: Two explosions occurred—one near a railway and another at a residential area in Su-ngai Kolok municipality.

Investigators also found spike strips scattered along roads to hinder pursuit and suspected improvised explosive devices (IEDs) near the Big C U-turn. EOD and forensic teams were immediately deployed.

The robbers reportedly stole two pickup trucks in Su-ngai Padi district before the attack. Both vehicles were later found abandoned in Waeng district, Narathiwat, where authorities sealed off the area for safety and evidence collection.

Commander of the Fourth Army Area has ordered all security forces — including police and military units — to assist affected residents and maintain full operational pressure across both urban and forested zones. 

All units have been instructed to implement the economic city protection plan at full readiness, with special emphasis on strengthening border patrols along the Thai–Malaysian frontier to prevent the suspects’ escape.

Security teams are focusing on tracking the getaway vehicles, identifying suspects, and securing possible escape routes, while also coordinating with neighbouring countries to pursue the perpetrators.

Forensic teams are gathering evidence, including CCTV footage, to ensure those responsible are brought to justice.

Norathip said the attack was not only meant to create unrest but also clearly aimed at obtaining funds to sustain the insurgent movement — showing disregard for civilian safety and local economic stability.

Preliminary analysis indicates that the group behind the assault shares behavioural patterns with past violent incidents where robbery and theft were used to finance militant operations, including the purchase of weapons, bomb-making materials, and vehicles used in attacks. Similar incidents have previously targeted the southern economy, such as:

• Multiple ATM robberies in a single day on August 31 2025,
   
• The Suthada gold shop heist worth more than 60 million baht in Na Thawi district, Songkhla, on August 24 2019,
   
• And coordinated attacks on the Tak Bai district office, which followed the same operational pattern.

Authorities believe the recent Su-ngai Kolok gold shop robbery was carried out by members of the Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN). The incident reflects the group’s declining financial resources after intensified government crackdowns on illegal funding channels, including drug trafficking, smuggling, and fuel rackets — all key sources of insurgent financing.

The evidence shows these groups are no longer acting out of ideology, as they claim to the public, but as mere criminals driven by self-interest, with no concern for the hardship they cause to civilians or the regional economy, Norathip said. 

The ISOC Region 4 Forward Command condemned the act as a “bandit-style crime” that damaged economic confidence in the Deep South, and urged local residents to remain vigilant. 

Anyone who spots suspicious individuals, objects, or information useful to the investigation is urged to call the ISOC Region 4 Forward Command hotline at 1341, or notify the nearest security unit, available 24 hours a day.

ISOC also warned that anyone assisting insurgents — by providing shelter, supplies, or hiding places — will face legal action under Section 189 of the Criminal Code, which carries a penalty of up to two years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to 40,000 baht, or both.