Police hunting 1000 rapists in LOS

Police to go after 1,000 rape suspects

Wanted on warrants going back 5 years

WASSAYOS NGARMKHAM

Police will crack down on more than 1,000 rape suspects wanted on arrest warrants in nine provinces surrounding Bangkok, to mark National Women's Day today. Pol Maj-Gen Wut Liptapanlop, deputy chief of Police Region 1, said the campaign against suspects who have fled since arrest warrants, dating back to 2002, were issued would be launched tomorrow, starting in Samut Prakan.

He expected that at least 200 suspects would be caught in the two-month crackdown.

It will be the first crackdown on rape suspects - one area of operations which police admit they have been lax to enforce.

Previous police operations have focused mainly on other criminals, particularly hired gunmen and thieves, allowing suspects wanted on rape charges to avoid arrest.

Pol Maj-Gen Wut said he has ordered police to prepare lists of warrants issued for the arrest of suspected rapists in nine provinces _ Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan, Ayutthaya, Pathum Thani, Ang Thong, Sing Buri, Chai Nat, Saraburi and Lop Buri.

Figures showed that Samut Prakan had the highest number of rape cases, with more than 200 during the past five years, followed by Samut Prakan and Nonthaburi.

Pol Maj-Gen Wut said the crackdown on rape suspects had to be launched urgently because more than 60% of the population in the nine provinces were women.

More than 70% of the female population in these provinces work in factories, particularly in Samut Prakan, Nonthaburi and Pathum Thani, which are adjacent to Bangkok.

If the suspects remain at large, female workers will be in danger, he said.

Rape and sexual assault cases against women caused psychological harm to female workers, and affected businesses, some of which had relocated.

Some foreign entrepreneurs had moved their production bases out of the country after their female employees were raped, he said.

He said if rapes took place in provinces which housed a World Heritage site and historic places, such as Ayutthaya, this would drive tourists away and ruin the reputation of the country.

Last Friday, Samut Prakan police arrested two men suspected of gang-raping an under-aged girl, and issued arrest warrants for three other suspects.

Those five suspects were accused of luring a 16-year-old girl to a townhouse in the Pruksa 15 housing estate and gang-raping her on Feb 27.


A female friend of the suspects videoed the rape, police said.

Some foreign entrepreneurs had moved their production bases out of the country after their female employees were raped, he said.

He said if rapes took place in provinces which housed a World Heritage site and historic places, such as Ayutthaya, this would drive tourists away and ruin the reputation of the country.