Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt has urged city residents to report the locations of gambling dens via the Traffy Fondue application so the information can be forwarded to the police.
Mr Chadchart said City Hall has no authority to raid such dens and arrest those involved in illegal gambling, but people can report the locations via the app which is connected to 88 police stations in the capital.
“City Hall is ready to receive information reported via the app — whether it is about the illegal use of a building or locations that pose health hazards,” Mr Chadchart said.
Five senior Din Daeng police station officers have been transferred pending an inquiry into alleged negligence after security camera footage showing an armed man stealing cash from a gambling den in their district went viral.
The footage was first posted on the “team big kren” and “Sai Mai Tong Rot” Facebook pages on Wednesday evening.
The footage shows an armed man wearing a red cap with a tattoo on his left arm waving a gun in the gambling den and snatching cash from a plastic box in the space of a minute.
Police said he stole about 300,000 baht in cash. The suspect, later identified as Thanadisai Sompong, 35, turned himself in on Thursday. He was to initially face robbery and firearms charges, police said.
Police yesterday took Mr Thanadisai to the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road to seek a detention order while further investigations were carried out.
Police are also gathering evidence to file charges against the operator of the casino, which used to house a snooker club before it was turned into a gambling den.
Pol Col Ekkarat Pao-in, deputy commander of the Metropolitan Police Bureau’s 1st Division, said the snooker club, located in Soi Pracha Songkhro 8, opened on Jan 5 when anti-government protests took place in the area.
This prevented police from inspecting the area and it was secretly turned into a gambling den, he said.
About 15 hours after being alerted to the robbery, police inspected the gambling den only to find it was an empty room.