Ayutthaya —
On September 24th, 2024, administrative officers in Uthai District, Ayutthaya Province, conducted a raid on a large worker camp in Nong Nam Som Subdistrict following complaints of a significant number of undocumented foreign laborers living on-site.
As local authorities arrived, several workers reportedly attempted to flee but were quickly apprehended.
Upon initial inspection, officers found 264 Myanmar nationals, including 212 men and 52 women, all without valid passports or immigration documents. The illegal workers were detained, and immigration officers were called to handle further legal proceedings.
This marks the second raid on the same camp, following a similar operation last year.
One worker (whose name was withheld by the officers) disclosed to authorities that nearly 300 people had illegally crossed the Thai-Myanmar border via Mae Sot District, Tak, each paying 20,000 baht to traffickers.
They were reportedly employed at the construction site, receiving daily wages of 500 baht for unskilled labor and 600 baht for skilled workers. The worker cited ongoing conflict in Myanmar as the primary reason for fleeing to seek employment in Thailand, according to the officers.
The camp, which provides labor for alleged Chinese-owned construction projects, has been previously targeted by authorities. Despite a prior crackdown, the operation resumed with undocumented workers continuing to be employed, according to the officers.
This article originally appeared on our sister website The Pattaya News.
