Bangkok bomb trial looms without masterminds in dock
Bangkok bombing was blamed on two Uygurs, but people on a long list of the key plotters are still on the loose with no sign they will be rounded up
Two Chinese nationals will go on trial this week for their alleged roles in a deadly bombing at a Bangkok shrine one year ago, an attack whose motive remains clouded in mystery following a murky and at times surreal investigation.
The trial, which starts on Tuesday, is being held at a military court in Bangkok and is expected to last more than a year.
The bombing was the worst assault of its kind in Thailand’s recent history.
But one year later more than a dozen key suspects named during the investigation remain at large, while analysts say Thai authorities have yet to offer a convincing motive.
The small but powerful bomb packed with ball bearings killed 20 people and wounded more than 100 when it ripped through Erawan shrine in the heart of Bangkok’s shopping district on August 17, 2015.
The Hindu shrine is popular among ethnic Chinese visitors, who made up a majority of the dead with five from Malaysia, five from China and two from Hong Kong.