Two suspected insurgents, one of them wanted by police for a string of robberies, including last year’s gold shop heist in which they stole more than 60 million baht in gold ornaments, were killed in clashes with Government forces in Thepa and Jana districts of the southern province of Songkhla Sunday night.
Acting on a tipoff, that a group of suspected insurgents on two motorcycles was arriving in Ban Krong E-dum in Thepa district on Sunday night, security forces were dispatched to hunt them down.
The group escaped to the beach, where they clashed with security forces, after which some of the group headed toward Jana district, where a firefight ensued.
After the gunfire stopped, security forces combed the scene, where they found one dead body, identified as Azman Jehming, 39. A second body was located on the beach, about 100 metres away, on Monday morning.
Military sources said that the second body is believed to be that of Jeh Ahrong Baheng, or Pohjee, aged 40, a key insurgent responsible for violent activities in the area.
According to sources, Pohjee was on the police wanted list for alleged involvement in the robbery of a car dealership in Na Thavee district on August 16th, 2017 and the robbery of Thongsook gold shop, in the same district, on August 24th last year.
Pohjee is also alleged to have been involved in the attack on an outpost in Muang district of Pattani province on July 24th last year, in which four defence volunteers were shot dead.
Security forces are still hunting for the remaining insurgents,who escaped after the clashes Monday night.
