Police stakeout illegal racers with a roadside BBQ
SAMUT PRAKAN - Undercover police work often involves disguises, surveillance and patience. In Bang Phli on Saturday night, it also involved a <i>moo krata</i> grill.
In the Bang Phli district of Samut Prakan, undercover police officers conducted an operation targeting illegal motorcycle racers. Police used a roadside barbecue as a diversion to lure suspects into a sting operation. The operation, named "Camping: Sending Kids Back into Their Parents' Arms," took place on Chalerm Phrakiat Road in Nong Prue subdistrict. Residents and motorists had complained about youths gathering to modify and race motorcycles at night.
Sixteen officers, some in plainclothes and some in uniform, participated in the undercover sting. Rather than waiting in patrol cars, officers set up a barbecue on the roadside, using folding tables and cooking equipment. They posed as local residents, blending in with the regular weekend crowd. When suspects began preparing to race, officers alerted nearby police units, which moved in to surround and detain the individuals.
Four motorcycles and eight youths were seized and detained as a result of the operation. Police emphasized that the barbecue was only a tactic to monitor suspects without drawing attention. The site was cleaned up afterwards, and all equipment was removed. The crackdown followed a similar undercover operation a week earlier, where officers disguised as street racers infiltrated a group of young riders before making arrests.
Written by urgent.news from Bangkok Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
