Police to look for soccer fans who fired flares at Suzuki Cup championship match

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Hua Mark police have been ordered by Metropolitan Police commissioner Pol Lt-Gen Sanit Mahathavorn to investigate and to find out the soccer fans who fired flares into the air during the championship match of the AFF Suzuki Cup between Thai and Indonesian soccer teams at Rajamangala Stadium on Saturday night.

He said he had seen the incident on the television during the live broadcast of the mater and, later on, in the social media and ordered Hua Mark police who oversee the area to find out the perpetrators so legal action can be taken against them.

He said the firing of flares caused a nuisance to the other soccer fans and it might result in the Thai soccer team being penalized by FIFA.

Pol Lt-Gen Sanit disclosed that it was suspected some of the soccer fans had smuggled the flares into the stadium, but it was not known whether their motive was intended to tarnish the image of the Thai Football Association or not.

He claimed police knew beforehand about the plan to fire the flares and plainclothes officers were dispatched to the stadium to investigate, but they could not infiltrate the group which had tight security among them.

However, he said police would collect all relevant evidences, including video footages from CCTV system in order to pin down the perpetrators.

“I assure you that we will deal with these trouble-makers because they have ruined the image of soccer circle and the country,” Pol Lt-Gen Sanit announced.

Police to look for soccer fans who fired flares at Suzuki Cup championship match - Thai PBS English News

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Army chief vows to punish army personnel for lighting flares at Rajamangala stadium

Army commander-in-chief Gen Chalermchai Sithisart vowed to punish the Army personnel if investigation confirmed that they were involved in lighting flares at the Ranamangala stadium during the football match between Thailand and Indonesia last Saturday.

He said they would be dealt with severe disciplinary action.

The army chief’s comment came after photographs of men in army uniforms lighting flares at the stadium were posted and went viral on the Internet with strong comments that some perpetrators who are wanted by police were in fact soldiers.

Unhappy with the posts, Gen Chalermchai promised a probe and disciplinary action.

He stated that anyone found involved in the matter, regardless of occupation, will face severe legal punishment.

But if the person is discovered to be attached to an Army unit, severe disciplinary action will be taken as the Royal Thai Army has no desire to protect or harbor a bad person.

The men in uniforms were said to be from the Army Ordnance Department.

Meanwhile the police on the other hand have revealed that they have discovered where the flares were purchased.

Pol. Lt. Gen. Sanit Mahathavorn the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau revealed that with the evidence that was collected yesterday by forensics teams at the stadium they have been able to ascertain the location of the shop from which the flares were bought.

The shop in question operates in the provinces and criminal proceedings will be taken against the owners if it confirmed that that they were directly involved in the incident.

Taken alongside eyewitness accounts, he said the police have made great progress in the case and have stated that they should be able to bring all the individuals involved to face justice in a matter of days.

He stated that they needed a little more time to make certain that all the evidence in the case was solid in order to deny the suspects any chance of denial. The exact number of persons involved in the matter however has yet to be ascertained.

Commenting on a clip that was posted on the social media showing one of the men involved in igniting the flares wearing Army uniform, he said the police were looking into the matter.

Army chief vows to punish army personnel for lighting flares at Rajamangala stadium - Thai PBS English News

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Man arrested for selling flares to Ultra Thailand group


A man has been arrested for selling illuminating flares to members of the Ultra Thailand group who set them off during the AFF Suzuki Cup final football match between Thailand and Indonesia at the Rajamangala...

link:Man arrested for selling flares to Ultra Thailand group | Bangkok Post: news.

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Man turns in to Lampang police for selling flares to football fans at Rajamangala Stadium

A firework vendor turned himself in to Lampang police yesterday after facing an arrest warrant for the sale of flares to s group of football fans at Rajamangala Stadium.

The flares were lighted during the football match between Thailand and Indonesia, and brought an outcry by the Football Association of Thailand over the unauthorized lighting which was against the rules of international football federation.

The vendor, Worapon Suasakul, 38, surrendered to Lampang police after he was wanted by Bangkok police for illegal importing and having in possession of war materials without license.

He admitted to selling 80 flares are, 40 baht apiece, to Ultra-Thailand football fan group.

He said he was also at the stadium to watch the football game but denied having any part in lighting the flares.

The police later released him on a 100,000 baht bond bail, but has to report to the police again on January 10 next year.

Man turns in to Lampang police for selling flares to football fans at Rajamangala Stadium - Thai PBS English News

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AFC fines TFA about one million baht for the flares firing incident at Rajamangala stadium

The Thai Football Association was ordered by the Asian Football Confederation to pay a fine of US$30,000 (about 1.07 million baht) for the incident on December 11 when a group of Thai soccer fans fired flares into the air at the Rajamangala stadium during the Suzuki Cup championship match between Thai and Indonesian soccer teams.

AFC said the incident was a violation of Article 68.1 and Article 67.1 of the AFC Disciplinary Code. The fine must be settled within 30 days of the notification of fine payment from the AFC.

The Thai Football Association was also warned that the association could face stiffer penalties which are not just fine if there are violations in future soccer matches of FIFA and AFC.

The TFA spokesman Pathit Supapong said the fine was just the first step of punishment and AFC might impose stiffer penalties if violations are repeated in the future.

He said the association had clarified to the AFC that it did not tolerate such a violation and had done its best to solve the problem. He pleaded with Thai soccer fans for cooperation and to refrain from doing anything which might be construed as defying the AFC disciplinary code.

AFC fines TFA about one million baht for the flares firing incident at Rajamangala stadium - Thai PBS English News