Police say grenade-incident due to personal conflict; Explosive not used by Thai military

BANGKOK, Oct 2 -- Police, noting that the Russian-design RDG-5 grenades not used by the Thai military, said that Saturday’s midnight bombing in Pratunam stems from a personal conflict, probably among teenagers.

Police and bomb disposal experts rushed to the verandah of the shophouse building near Pratunam intersection. The ground floor is a restaurant.

The verandah was slightly damaged after one grenade exploded in mid-air while the other, found on the verandah of the Krung Thai Bank, had its pin removed but failed to explode.

Bomb disposal experts later destroyed the dud bomb at the scene of the incident.

Acting Bangkok police chief Pol Maj Gen Chakthip Chaijinda told journalists that senior police officers met urgently after the incident and agreed that about two youths were involved and it had arisen from a personal conflict.

The bombers must have climbed to the verandah of a nearby building to throw them, Gen Chaktip said, but they missed and fell on a roof instead.

The bombs were of the RDG-5 type manufactured in Russia which are not imported or used by the Thai military, he said.

Gen Chakthip said police were investigating how the explosive was brought into Thailand. (MCOT online news)