An Australian man wanted for child sex offences, drug procurement and physical assault was arrested in this northeastern province on Wednesday morning.
Pol Maj Gen Pairat Pukcharoen, commander of the Immigration Police Division 4, said the Australian man, identified only as Richard, was arrested at a house in Muang district at 7am as he is wanted by the Australian Federal Police for child sex offences.
According to the commander, Richard, 57, is listed as a sex offender by the Australian police and was convicted for child sex abuse. He was also prosecuted for physical assault and drug procurement.
‘The danger of Richard prompted the Queensland police to issue an arrest warrant. Australia revoked his passport to stop him from travelling but he managed to sneak into Thailand and wished to hide in Khon Kaen for good,’ Pol Maj Gen Pairat said.
The commander said that the Thai police were serious about tackling foreign criminals, especially child sex abusers and human traffickers, who were hiding in Thailand. Police were working on the extradition of the Australian man, he added.