Thailand, With U.S. Help, Arrests Man Suspected of Selling 'dirty Bomb' Material

ap ^ | Jun 13, 2003

[TomGuy]

Thailand, With U.S. Help, Arrests Man Suspected of Selling 'dirty Bomb' Material

The Associated Press

Published: Jun 13, 2003

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - Alerted by U.S. investigators, undercover Thai police on Friday arrested a man selling radioactive material that can be used to make a so-called dirty bomb.

Officers arrested Narong Penanam, 44, in the parking lot of a Bangkok hotel after he offered to sell agents a metal container that he said contained uranium, police Col. Pisit Pisutisak said. Narong expected to be paid $240,000.

An analysis of the material by the Office of the Atomic Energy for Peace later revealed it was not uranium but cesium-137, which has a number of medical and industrial applications and can used in a bomb designed to spread radioactive material over a wide area.

Narong was charged with illegal possession of nuclear materials, punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of $240.

Pisit said Narong told authorities he got the container from neighboring Laos and claimed his sources have more.

The investigation was initiated by the U.S. Customs Service, whose agents were present during the arrest, said a U.S. Embassy spokesman, on customary condition of anonymity.

AP-ES-06-13-03 0750EDT

[Krafty123]

I think Cs is more harmful than Uranium.

[doug from upland]

Only one year in prison?

[ASA Vet]

Only one year in prison?

I never want to spend time in a Thai prison.
Being Thai, he'll likely survie the ordeal, many farang wouldn't.

[ASA Vet]

"Survive" (more coffee needed!!)

[Dog]

fyi..

[Coop]

What is "farang"? Legit word (maybe Thai?) or a typo?

[prairiebreeze]

told authorities he got the container from neighboring Laos and claimed his sources have more.

Criminey, I hope they can make this loser sing like a canary about his "sources".

Prairie

[blackie]

Bump.

[flamefront]

punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of $240. Considering Narong expected to be paid $240,000, he likely has enough to buy himself out of this minor incident!

[ASA Vet]

Sorry about that.
I've been immersed in Thai culture so long I sometimes forget everyone isn't.
Farang is a Thai word for someone of white European ancestory.
It is not an insult word.

[Coop]

That's kinda what I expected. Thanks

[rontorr]

"Farang"... I can tell you are in Thailand before looking at your freeper page. Where you at? We had to come back to Oregon last year mand get some things squared away, can't wait to be able to go "back" home to above Chiang Mai.

[rontorr]

Thai for whitey

[rontorr]

I hope they can make this loser sing like a canary about his "sources".
.............


he's probably not going to live long enough

[rontorr]

blackie, thanks for the bump, haven't looked at today's Bangkok Post.com yet to see what they say over there. Stuff like this is lying around. I remember a few years ago, there were some barrels of used Radiation Therapy material improplerly stored(in properly marked containers)
sitting in a parking garage when someone stole it, opened the barrels and played with it, several people got radiation poisoning and died a horrible death.

[rontorr]

$240 US is about 6-8 months wages for the typical Thai villager

[blackie]

If $240.00 is six months wages there ... a retired couple with a $50K annual income could live pretty well, right? :)

[ASA Vet]

You've go FR mail

[rontorr]

12, 000 a year will have you living really good, provided you took enough cash with you to buy what you needed to get everything set up. I think the Visa regs at the moment for retirees is $20,000 US in a thai bank, and $1600 US a month income. 50K would have you sittin high on the hog, especially up where we live