Yala —
At 8:00 PM, on July 9th, 2024, Yala police officers received reports of firearm robberies involving village defense volunteers in multiple locations.
It was reported that about 10 insurgents, disguised as ranger officers and armed with firearms, stole two personal handguns and a government-issued shotgun at Ban Krong Pinang School, in Krong Pinang, Yala before fleeing.
Later, at 9:50 PM, a similar incident occurred at the security post in front of Ban Ratana School in Mueang Yaha, Yala. Seven to eight armed insurgents took two shotguns and a handgun from the local defense volunteers.
At 11:45 PM, the Lam Mai police in Yala were informed of another robbery in the Lam Mai Subdistrict. 17 insurgents, again dressed like ranger officers, stole a government-issued shotgun from the village headman’s house in Ban Nam Yen, Mueang Yala.
Lastly, another incident occurred in Lam Mai Subdistrict as 10 insurgents in ranger uniforms reportedly robbed another government-issued shotgun in Mueang Yala.
However, no village defense volunteers were physically attacked by the perpetrators.
According to the officers, these attacks are believed to be a retaliatory move by insurgents against state officials following recent security operations.
Intelligence reports had previously indicated movements by insurgent networks in Yaha, linked to Masanusi, a 47-year-old operational leader of the KOMPI group. This group had plans to carry out bombings, grenade attacks, and ambushes on patrolling units between July 10th-20th, 2024.
In response, security levels were raised to the highest to prevent further incidents, and relevant agencies were tasked with gathering evidence from the crime scenes to trace and capture the perpetrators swiftly.
