BangkokPost-June 6
The Royal Thai Police (RTP) has issued a secret order to police nationwide to keep an eye out for spies from Iran believed to be in the region after one was arrested in Indonesia, prompting security fears, a police source said. The source told the Bangkok Post that security agencies are closely monitoring the movement of Iranian nationals and some Thai Muslims who are suspected to be working as spies in Thailand. National police chief Pol Gen Suwat Jangyodsuk is said to have issued an order to the RTP’s Special Branch, the Central Investigation Bureau, the Metropolitan Police Bureau and all nine Provincial Police Regions to be on alert and gather intelligence about the movements of secret agents. The order cited an incident on May 24, last year when Indonesian authorities were tipped off that a man named Ghassem Saberi Gilchalan arrived in the country carrying a Bulgarian passport which was later found to be fake, the source said. On May 27, last year, the man was arrested by Indonesian authorities at Soekarno–Hatta International Airport just before departing for Qatar. The man allegedly told police that he had used a fake passport to enter the country. Indonesian police found that he entered the country more than 10 times using false papers and a court sentenced him to two years in jail for the offences.
Indonesian police also found that the man had 11 mobile phones, one tablet computer, a number of SIM cards and cash worth more than 320,000 baht, the source added. A check on his mobile phones found the names of some Thai Muslims, the source said, adding that Indonesian authorities believe Gilchalan is a spy from Iran. Read more at: https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2321094/iran-spy-puts-cops-on-alert
