"Thai Army and Police” receive 635 Thai from Poipet back to Thailand

Today (30 April 2026), 2:50 PM at the Ban Khlong Luek border crossing, Aranyaprathet District, Sa Kaeo Province, Major General Worawet Wanmongkol, Director of the Foreign Affairs Office, Army Intelligence Department, addressed the repatriation of 635 Thais arrested by Cambodian police in Poipet. He stated that this operation reflects positive Thai-Cambodian relations, carried out under a Joint Statement through coordinated military diplomatic mechanisms involving the Thai Army, the Royal Thai Police, and relevant agencies. The goals are to restore normalcy, strengthen border security, and enforce international laws against transnational crime.

Pol. Maj. Gen. Thitawat Suriyachai, Deputy Commander of Provincial Police Region 2, stated that a multidisciplinary team—including the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security and the Ministry of Labor—is strictly screening the returnees to distinguish between victims of human trafficking and those who voluntarily engaged in illegal activities. He noted that this border issue has persisted for over two years and urged those deceived into such work to contact the Thai Embassy or NGOs. For those intentionally working as scammers, the police vow to prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. Initial checks revealed one individual with a criminal record and six others with existing online complaints.

Regarding the facility where they were apprehended, Pol. Maj. Gen. Thitawat confirmed it likely housed both casinos and scam operations, often linked to "mule accounts." The Royal Thai Police has updated its 72-question screening process to better differentiate between gambling website workers, scammers, and victims of sexual abuse. He also revealed a concerning estimate from security agencies that nearly 10,000 Thais remain stranded in Cambodia, with today's 635 returnees being only the first group successfully brought back.