Alarm raised over theft of guns, bombs
SPECIAL REPORT: Officials are in a flurry over the rampant pillaging of munitions from military depots
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[li]Published: 22/09/2010 at 12:00 AM[/li][li]Newspaper section: News[/li][/ul]
Weapons continue to be stolen from military arsenals at a disturbing rate, leading to vague suspicions some are destined for the red shirt movement besides the general black market.
At least two serious instances of weapons being stolen have come to light since March, when the red shirt rally began in earnest in the capital.
In the first case, a massive load of weapons and explosives was stolen from the arms depot of a military camp in the southern province of Phatthalung in early March.
Among the missing weapons and ammunition were 69 M67 hand grenades and 3,100 bullets for HK and M16 rifles.
The government claimed the stolen weapons might have been supplied to pro-red shirt militants in Bangkok.
In the latest case earlier this month, 32 rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and about 8,000 bullets for M16 rifles plus a quantity of M60 bullets disappeared from an army arsenal in Lop Buri.
Some in the government again speculated the missing weapons and ammunition would be used by the red shirt movement which was rejuvenated by Sunday’s Ratchaprasong gathering after being violently dispersed in April.
Military sources said 90% of war weapons that disappear from military arsenals are stolen by non-commissioned military officers.
Some steal weapons to sell in private deals, while others go further and deal in larger quantities with arms trafficking syndicates.
In the Phatthalung case, at least eight army privates were arrested for stealing the weapons.
They confessed they planned to sell them to insurgent groups in the lower South where they would eventually be used against government troops in the insurgency-affected provinces.
An army source said there were three major supply sources for illegal sales of weapons.
The first group is made up of soldiers who blatantly steal weapons from army arsenals. Another group practices what is effectively embezzlement in that weapons, particularly bullets, from the army’s weapon factories, are claimed to be substandard and replacements need to be sent.
The third source is arms traffickers along the border with Cambodia.
Military insiders claim most soldiers who get involved in weapons trafficking are non-commissioned soldiers whose salaries are too low to support their families, or who are drug addicts and gamblers.
In practice, strong security applies at each arsenal with only two or three officials holding the key to the weapons storage areas. However, lax practices by the personnel involved means the weapons are vulnerable to theft. The senior military man on duty, usually a sergeant, who keeps a key, allows a private to enter the arsenal to clean up and even count weapons number as standard procedure.
But the sergeants often do not verify the accuracy of the information before handing over the details to the next person rostered to take charge of security. The insiders say that thieves steal the equipment bit by bit so officers in charge of the arsenals do not notice any weapons are missing.
At the company level, weapons examinations are conducted every week while at the battalion level, examinations are only conducted every month, making it much easier to steal weapons.
After the theft at the Phatthalung arsenal, several army units have changed their security systems and now use a master key which requires a code.
Only two officials _ the sergeant on duty and the arsenal chief _ will know the code, a source said.
With violence ever present in certain parts of the country, and a macho mentality to possess a weapon being prevalent in some sectors of society, weapons theft and smuggling is a lucrative business.
The source said one long-term solution to the problem is to improve the welfare, living conditions and salaries of non-commissioned officers.bron:Bangkokpost