New Bangkok bomb suspect is a woman

Two new suspects - one of them a woman - are being hunted in connection with last month's deadly bomb blast in Bangkok, Thailand, police said on Monday.

The new leads follow a raid on an apartment on the outskirts of the city over the weekend, where investigators found bomb-making materials.

Speaking on Thai TV, national police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri said: “The first suspect is a woman, Wanna Suansan, aged 26.” She is a Thai national, he added. A photo from her identity card was released to the media, showing her wearing a black hijab.

A man, whose nationality is unknown - but who was also living in the flat - is also being sought, officials said.

On Saturday, an unidentified foreign man was arrested at a separate apartment just north of Bangkok's international airport. Explosives and piles of fake passports were also discovered.

Investigators initially said the prime suspect had refused to speak. But on Monday, they revealed that his interrogation had yielded “very useful” information.

In order to protect Thailand's relationship with other countries, officials have refused to reveal his nationality. But unconfirmed reports suggest the fake passports found at his flat were from Turkey.

Twenty people, mostly tourists from across Asia, were killed in the August 17 blast, in a main shopping district of Bangkok. More than 100 others were wounded.

No one has yet claimed responsibility, and fears of a link to international terrorism have been played down by Thai authorities.

Police believe the suspect in custody may have been part of a crime group which helped illegal migrants obtain counterfeit documents. One theory is that the bomb attack was in retaliation for a recent crackdown on their lucrative trade.

Another possible motive being explored is an insurgency by Malay-Muslims in Thailand's three most southerly states, where killings take place on almost a daily basis. The violence has previously never spread to Bangkok.

Police said on Monday that a cash reward, offered to the public, for information about the bomber would go to the investigation team that helped find the bombing suspect. The 3 billion bahts (74,000 euros) bounty is to be shared between officers.

mm/jil (AFP, AP)