KOTA BHARU, March 8 — Thai police plan to install barbed wire at all illegal crossing points along the Sungai Golok River, which forms the border between Malaysia and Thailand, as an initial step to strengthen security control in the area.
Narathiwat Provincial police chief Maj Gen Prayong Kotsakha said the move is part of a broader effort to tighten border security.
He said the installation of barbed wire would be the first phase before further measures are introduced, including the construction of security walls and the installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, similar to measures already implemented in several areas in Sungai Golok district.
“For now, barbed wire will be installed at locations frequently used as illegal crossing points, similar to steps taken by Malaysian authorities,” he told Malaysian media through a local interpreter recently.
“This measure aims to strengthen border control and curb cross-border criminal activities,” he told the Malaysian media through a local interpreter recently.
Prayong added that Thai authorities would seek feedback from villagers in affected areas before implementing the plan to avoid potential issues.
He stressed that close cooperation between Malaysia and Thailand is crucial to ensure that illegal crossing routes along the border can be monitored more effectively.
He also commended Malaysian authorities for installing warning signs at several illegal crossing points along the border to alert the public to the offence of crossing the border illegally.
Commenting on drug trafficking in Narathiwat province, Prayong said authorities had detected an increase in drug smuggling using courier and delivery services.
He said three cases had been detected since the end of last month in the districts of Rueso, Rangae and Sungai Golok, involving the seizure of between 10,000 and 500,000 Yaba pills.
According to him, most of the drugs intercepted in the three districts were believed to have been destined for Malaysia.
However, taking legal action against the perpetrators has been difficult as smugglers often use other individuals’ identities when sending packages through delivery companies.
He said the syndicates also frequently provide inaccurate delivery addresses to avoid detection by authorities.
Prayong added that most of the Yaba pills were transported from northern Thailand and temporarily stored in border districts such as Sungai Golok or Takbai before being smuggled into Malaysia.
He noted that drug trafficking activities involving substances such as Yaba pills and syabu often take place in border areas to evade detection by enforcement agencies in both countries.
“Our investigations also found that some Yaba pills smuggled into Malaysia were brought back into Thailand after the syndicates feared the drugs would be detected and seized,” he said. — Bernama
