POLICE DRUG ARRESTS REACH 29,501

Police have arrested 29,501 suspects on drug-related charges in the past
month of the government's war on drugs, which saw a death toll of 1,035,
with four policemen killed and nine others injured, a police spokesman said
yesterday.

Maj-General Pongsaphat Pongcharoen said Police Commissioner-General Sant
Sarutanond was satisfied with the police's performance in the drug war,
which began on February 1.

Meanwhile Permanent Secretary of the Interior Ministry Sermsak Pongphanit
said the ministry would increase its provincial arrest target from 25 to 45
or 50 per cent of blacklisted suspects for the remaining two months of the
drug war.

Sermsak said all provincial governors had met their 25-per-cent targets in
the first month and none would be transferred to inactive posts.

The police spokesman said police had made 28,702 raids and 29,501 arrests.
He said investigators were now trying to use information provided by those
arrested to track down and arrest "bigger fish".

He said the arrests included 184 methamphetamine-manufacturers, 745 major
distributors and 7,558 retailers. He said most of the suspects - 6,628 -
had been arrested by the Metropolitan Police, adding that the Provincial
Police Bureau 2 had come second with 3,176 suspects and the Provincial
Police Bureau 7 third with 3,055.

The spokesman said a total of 943 cases of murder involving 1,035 deaths
had been reported during the first month of the war on drugs. He declined
to say whether all 1,035 deaths were related to drugs, saying the death
toll included all types of murder.

Earlier, police said most of the deaths were cases of "silencings", or
killings ordered by drug bosses for fear that minor drug dealers would tip
off police about their names and whereabouts. However, the death-toll
announcements have led to criticism of the government by human-rights
activists, who suspect the police may be responsible for the killings.

Pongsphat said that of the 1,035 deaths, 25 were drug suspects shot dead by
police because they had resisted arrest and fired at officers first. He
said four policemen had been killed and nine injured.

The public continued to provide police with tip-offs via a mail box, he
said, adding that police had so far received 7,259.