The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has taken legal action against about 400 mostly Cambodian traders who attacked officials during a raid at the Rong Kluea border market in Sa Kaeo on Wednesday.
A damaged utility vehicle lies on its side following an attack by about 400 Cambodian traders during a Department of Special Investigation seizure of counterfeit goods at Rong Kluea Market in Sa Kaeo's Aranyaprathet district on Wednesday. The violence left 12 officials injured. (Photo by Sawat Ketngam)
Twelve officials were injured in the violence triggered when authorities tried to seize fake goods.
DSI chief Pol Col Paisit Wongmuang said he instructed his deputy, Pol Lt Col Suriya Singhakamol, to investigate the incident at the border market in Aranyaprathet district.
The attackers must be brought to justice, he insisted.
Violence flared during a DSI-led operation to confiscate counterfeit goods, including watches, belts and perfume. The inspectors were from the DSI's Bureau of Intellectual Property Crime and the French embassy.
The goods were seized from a storeroom in the market's Block C building and loaded onto a truck. Cambodian traders tried to persuade the officials to return their goods but failed. Angry, they surrounded the truck, in front of a convenience store close to Kasikornbank's Rong Kluea branch, to prevent it from leaving.
Several DSI officials drew their guns to warn the traders who were visibly angry. Some of the traders climbed onto the truck to take their goods. They also threw rocks, wooden clubs and empty bottles at the officials and the vehicle.
However, the traders later dispersed after local police arrived at the scene.
The incident left 12 officials injured; eight from the DSI and four local policemen, according to a DSI statement released on Wednesday. The injured officials were sent to hospitals in Klong Luek and Aranyaprathet.
The six-wheel truck and a utility vehicle belonging to the DSI were damaged. The utility vehicle was turned on its side and its windows smashed during the violence.
Following the attack, Nirut Phattanarat, director of the DSI's Intellectual Property Crime Section 3 who led the operation at the market, filed a legal complaint against the Cambodian traders responsible for the violence with Klong Luek police on Wednesday afternoon.
Pol Lt Col Nirut was also invited to explain what happened to Maj Gen Suriya Parawee, commander of the 19th Military Circle, which oversees security operations in the area.
Maj Gen Suriya said the DSI should have told local authorities about their plan to seize the goods beforehand. The situation spiralled out of control partly because the officials were seen carrying guns.
He added that local authorities would have been able to provide security and assistance to the DSI officials.
More importantly, the incident might hurt relations with Cambodia since Rong Kluea Market is located close to the border checkpoint where many Cambodian traders cross to conduct business on a daily basis, the commander said.
Pol Col Seksan Wattanaphong, chief of Klong Luek police station, said Cambodian traders often claim they are frequently extorted by law enforcement officials. The DSI officials went into the market wearing plainclothes and failed to inform the local police about their operation. This left them without sufficient security protection.
DSI director-general Paisit Wongmuang said the DSI frequently conducts seizures of counterfeit goods at the market, which is one of the country's major distribution points for fake products. Officials were threatened by Cambodian traders during previous raids, Pol Col Paisit said.