Crime Desperate Cambodian Migrants Break Through Wall to Illegally Enter Thailand

[Georgealbert]

 

Pictures courtesy of Khaosod.

 

Authorities have apprehended multiple groups of Cambodian nationals who illegally crossed the border into Thailand, citing joblessness and poverty as reasons for their desperate attempts. One group of women was found hiding in a toilet after smashing through a wall to gain entry.

 

At around 21:00 on 9 July, patrol officers arrested nine Cambodian nationals travelling on foot near Ban Dong Ngu in Pa Rai subdistrict, Sa Kaeo province. According to initial interviews, the group had previously worked in the Rong Kluea border market, repairing and reselling second-hand shoes. They had returned to Cambodia in June after stricter border measures were introduced, fearing they would be unable to go back home.

 

However, once back in Cambodia, they were faced with severe unemployment and a lack of income. Knowing the terrain well after years of working in Thailand, they decided to cross back illegally through forest paths, this time without hiring a guide.

 

In a separate incident in Khlong Nam Sai subdistrict, Aranyaprathet district, another team of officers arrested six more Cambodians, including a two-year-old girl. The family was found walking through a sugarcane field. Two smugglers accompanying them fled the scene. The group admitted to paying 4,000 baht per person to be smuggled across the border. They said they needed to return to manage their damaged goods at the Rong Kluea market, where they had previously run a small shop.

 

Meanwhile, soldiers from the Burapha Task Force and Ranger Company 1201, responsible for patrolling the Thai-Cambodian border near Klong Luek, Aranyaprathet, heard unusual banging from inside a room in a block of rented flats adjacent to the border. Upon inspection of room B/1 in the “Je Sayun Market” compound, they discovered three Cambodian women hiding in a bathroom. A hole had been smashed through a nearby wall, revealing the method of entry.

 

The women, who possessed Cambodian passports but no valid Thai entry stamps, claimed to be from Bang Klueng village in Banteay Meanchey province. They said they had previously sold second-hand bags in the Rong Kluea market but returned home in late June when border checkpoint hours were changed, fearing they might be stranded in Thailand.

 

With no jobs available in Cambodia and the Thai border still closed to routine crossings, they decided to return by stealth. They chose to break into the vacant rental property near the border, aware of its location and crossed on foot.

 

All three were detained by the rangers and handed over to Klong Luek Police Station for legal processing related to illegal border entry.

 

Authorities have expressed concern over the rising number of undocumented crossings, as poverty in neighbouring Cambodia drives more individuals to risk arrest in pursuit of work in Thailand.

 

 

  Adapted by Asean Now from Khoasod 2025-07-11