Turkish embassy refutes reports Bangkok bomb suspect is Turkish citizen

A foreigner detained by the Thailand police in connection with the deadly Bangkok bombing is not a Turkish citizen, according to the Turkish Embassy in Bangkok.

The unidentified foreigner, who is being held in military custody at an undisclosed location, was captured during an Aug. 29 morning raid on a flat on the eastern outskirts of Bangkok.

Investigators say he was found with bomb-making equipment and dozens of fake passports, including a Turkish passport that was made public after the arrest.

Turkey requested further information from Thailand through diplomatic channels and via Interpol. However, the embassy in Bangkok denied reports that the suspect was a Turkish citizen, Do?an News Agency reported on Aug. 30.

Thai Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwong also called on both the media and Thais to "be patient."

"Don't talk about Turkish or not Turkish," Wongsuwong told Agence France Presse. "We have to investigate."
National police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri said officers believed the suspect was part of a criminal group who helped illegal migrants obtain counterfeit documents - and that the bomb attack was retaliation for a recent crackdown by Thai authorities.     

"They [the gang] are unsatisfied with police arresting illegal entrants," Thavornsiri told Thailand's Channel 3 in a telephone interview without elaborating how investigators knew this. 

"It's a network that fakes nationalities and sends them [illegal migrants] onto third countries," he added.

The blast that hit the Erawan shrine in a busy Bangkok shopping district on Aug. 17 was Thailand's worst single mass-casualty attack, killing 20 people - most of them ethnic Chinese tourists from across Asia.

Thai authorities...