Thailand arrests three Bangladeshis for ‘illegal border crossing’

Three Bangladeshi nationals were arrested and accused of illegally crossing the border from Cambodia into Thailand via the Sa Kaeo province this week, reports The Pataya News.

The incident took place in the Klong Luek area as the three men were allegedly caught in the act wading across a canal into Thailand from the Cambodian side near Poipet. Border Control officers under the direction of Police General Tharapong Malakam made the arrest.

Two of them were named as Sohel Parvez, 40, and Abdul Karim Azad, 33. All were Bangladeshi citizens and had their passports present.

The three men reportedly told the police that they had flown to Cambodia on vacation in March and been stuck during the COVID-19 crisis without a way to get home and had run out of money.

There is no formal Bangladesh Embassy in Cambodia so the men planned to sneak into Thailand and go to the Bangladesh Embassy in Bangkok for assistance.

Thailand border police said the men will be detained in Sa Kaeo under quarantine procedures and tested for the coronavirus. Embassy officials would, however, be informed about the men’s circumstances and invited to assist.

Sa Kaeo has been a major illegal border crossing point and Thai officials have put into effect strict measures to catch illegal migrants.