Thai immigration officials have withdrawn the visas of two CNN reporters who entered the crime scene of Thursday’s mass killings at the child care centre in Nong Bua Lam Phu province, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, deputy national police chief said today (Sunday).
He said that the two reporters, 47-year-old Anna Coren, an Australian, and 34-year-old Daniel Hodge, a Briton, were escorted from their hotel in Udon Thani by police and taken to Na Klang police station in Nong Bua Lam Phu province for questioning.
He said that police want to know from them which Thai officials had allowed them into the crime scene, as they had claimed, adding, that only the police have the authority to grant such permission.
The deputy national police chief also said that the two reporters may face charges of intrusion into a crime scene and interfering with evidence, if it can be proved that they crossedthe crime scene cordon without permission.
He explained that, according to Thai legal procedure, the two reporters will be deported and blacklisted, but only after the completion of any legal proceedings.
An informed source at the Immigration Bureau, meanwhile, said that officials had checked the two reporters’ visas and found that they are in the country on tourist visas.
A complaint of intrusion into government premises has been filed against the CNN reporters with Na Klang district police, by the mayor of Uthai Sawan Tambon Administrative Organisation (TAO).
The mayor said today that he learned about the breach of the crime scene cordon from the media and has not yet made enquiries with local officials about what actually occurred.
The child care centre is located in the compound of the Uthai Sawan TAO.
Meanwhile, the BBC’s journalist in Thailand, Jonathan Head, said on Twitter today that he was outside the centre to cover the event and had warned other reporters not to cross the crime scene cordon, when they had tried to climb over the fence.
I stopped another media team climbing over the gate trying to get inside the nursery where the terrible killings took place on Thursday night. Entering a serious crime scene is not acceptable behaviour by journalists. Showing blood-stained rooms inside is hugely insensitive. pic.twitter.com/YHB6WALnZc
— Jonathan Head (@pakhead) October 8, 2022
