Bangkok bomb: Thai police arrest man over Erawan blast

Officers raided an apartment used by the man in northern Bangkok on Saturday and found possible bomb-making materials, a police spokesman said.

The suspect "looks like the one we are looking for", said the spokesman, Prawut Thavornsiri.

The bomb tore through the city's crowded Erawan Shrine on 17 August.

Mr Thawornsiri said that the arrested man is a foreigner but refused to say whether he is Turkish, as reported by some Bangkok media.

Bomb-making kit

"We have detained one person," deputy national police chief General Chaktip Chaijinda told reporters in a live TV broadcast.

"We have found components of bomb-making materials in his apartment and I am confident that he is likely involved with the bomb attack," he said.

Police had been searching for a prime suspect who was seen on CCTV footage leaving a backpack at the shrine shortly before the blast, which injured more than 100, mostly tourists.

A photofit image was released showing the suspect with dark hair and glasses.

General Chaktip said it was "not yet clear" whether the man arrested on Saturday is the same as the man in the CCTV images.

"We found dozens of passports inside his room. We have to check which nationalities they belong to," he said in the broadcast.

Police said at the time they suspected the attack had been planned a month or more in advance and involved at least 10 people, but said a connection to international terrorism was unlikely.

A reward of one million baht ($28,000; £17,950) was offered for information but it is not known whether this played a part in Saturday's arrest.

The shrine is a popular destination for Chinese and Thai tourists.

Source: bbc.com