Posted on 09/10/2007 9:24:53 PM PDT by Raphael Rana
Thailand has arrested the finance chief of the Tamil Tigers of Sri Lanka, allegedly the group's chief procurer of arms.
Kumaran Pathmanadan is reported to have been arrested by police in Bangkok on Monday evening. He is one of the top officials in the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the formal name of the group.
Pathmanadan apparently had obtained Thai citizenship. He continued to run the global network of LTTE offices and its weapons procurement, logistics and money laundering operations.
He has been on Interpol's Most Wanted list for a number of years. He has also been implicated in several assassinations of political leaders.
The online newspaper Asian Tribune called him "the king pin of Tiger arms smuggling".
"He is a noted smuggler of arms and narcotics. Operating with bank accounts opened in London, Frankfurt, Denmark, Athens and Australia... he has had a free run so far," the newspaper alleged
His arrest followed the detention in Ranong province last month of three Tamil Tiger operatives trying to buy guns and 45,000 rounds of ammuntion.
All four were suspected of running a Tamil Tiger gun-running ring centered in Thailand.
Pathmanadan, who also had a number of aliases, has recently been the subject of a manhunt that stretched to Johannesburg, Rangoon, Singapore and Bangkok. Police said they believed he had bank accounts in London, Frankfurt Denmark, Athens and Australia and has over 200 passports for his use.
He and his group are suspected of running weapons purchased Thailand and neighbouring countries to the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka. The Tigers have been desinated as a terrorist group by most western countries, but not Thailand.
A Jane's Intelligence report on the group stated that despite the cease-fire agreement in Sri Lanka, the LTTE continued to re-supply cadres. It said:
"While Cambodia is the hub of the LTTE East Asia Network, Thailand continues to serve as the most important country for trans-shipment of munitions and coordination of logistics... its excellent communications infrastructure, proximity to former war zones in both Cambodia and [Burma] and its western coastline facing the Bay of Bengal and Sri Lanka beyond have made Thailand the ancient interface between the LTTE's war zone."
Thailand?
Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok, Thailand
Pen arai, for him.
Dee. Som nam nah.
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