Five die as police are lured to hidden bomb

Suspected insurgents lured police to the scene by beating up Wilawan Satikorakul, owner of the store in Chanae district.

Hearing of the assault, the police rushed to the scene only to find Wilawan already in a nearby hospital.

As they stood talking with villagers by the grocery shop, the bomb exploded, killing five and injuring 12. The dead were all local villagers, while 10 of the injured were police officers.

Initial police investigations found the explosive had been concealed in a plastic vegetable bucket. They believe the insurgents hid near the shop and triggered the device after seeing police and vil¬lagers gather at the scene.