World

North Korean weapons cargo plane crew jailed 12 more days

by D.S.Rajput | December 25, 2009 at 08:41 pm

422 views | 11 Recommendations | 1 comment

New Delhi: The North korea cargo plane crew menmber remain more 12 days in Thai prison. in this cargo plane loaded with weapons. The five crew members -- four from Kazakhstan and one from Belarus -- insist their destination was Sri Lanka and not Iran, contradicting a report from arms trafficking experts.The crew also says they thought they were carrying oil-drilling equipment, rather than 35 tons of explosives, rocket-propelled grenades and components for surface-to-air missiles, as the Thai government initially reported. Full details of the weapons and where they were manufactured have not been disclosed.

"We need more time to investigate and interrogate," said police Maj Sompot Khempeth, after the Bangkok Criminal Court accepted a police request to extend the crew's detention an additional 12 days. They can be held up to 84 days.

The crew members have been charged with illegal arms possession. They were not present at court and were to be informed of the ruling via video conference later in the day, Sompot said. Thai authorities, acting on a US tip, impounded the Ilyushin Il-76 cargo plane on 12th December during a refuelling stop in Bangkok. They seized the weapons and transferred them to a Thai military base for inspection.