On Tuesday (30th May), a pipe bomb was found near Ratchadaphisek Road and the Thailand Cultural Centre MRT station in Bangkok.
Bangkok Post reported that Thai police were alerted to a suspicious device at about 2pm by a motorcycle taxi operator. The bomb was removed by the bomb disposal unit for further examination.
According to ChannelNews Asia, the steel pipe device was 20cm (about 8 inches) in length. It also had a fuse that was attached to a mosquito coil which was reportedly ignited before it was dampened by rain.
A cleaner of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said he saw 2 men on a motorcycle around the area where the pipe bomb was found. The witness explained, “When the bike stopped, the man riding pillion got off and walked up to the spot where the pipe bomb was found. After about 5 minutes, he returned and both men sped away on their motorcycle.”
This discovery comes about a week after the Phramongkutklao Hospital bomb attack, which injured at least 21 people. AsiaOne also pointed out that there are 3 recent blasts in Bangkok involved the use of pipe bombs.
National police chief Chakthip Chaijinda said that the police have yet to determine the connection between the pipe bomb and the hospital blast. “If they are related, we will treat them as one case,” he added.
Sources: AsiaOne, ChannelNews Asia, Bangkok Post.
