http://www.bangkokpost.com 7 Feb 2017 at 10:05

Khlong Luek checkpoint in Sa Kaeo's Aranyaprathet district is a popular crossing point for travel between Thailand and Cambodia. (Bangkok Post file photo)

A pickup driver was arrested in Bangkok on Tuesday morning after bringing 15 illegal Cambodian migrant workers to the capital from Sa Kaeo on the eastern border, Immigration Bureau chief Pol Lt Gen Natthorn Prohsunthon said. Puwanart Pothirak, 20, was detained about 3am after a pickup he was driving was stopped for a search in Soi 62 off Chalerm Phra Kiat Road in Bangkok's Prawet district.

Travelling on the pickup were 15 undocumented Cambodian workers, eight men and seven women, aged 20-34. Mr Puwanart told police he was taking them from the border in Sa Kaeo province to various work sites in Bangkok, collecting 2,000-2,500 baht each from them. Police would further investigate to find out if he was involved in a human-trafficking network,Pol Lt Gen Natthorn said.

He was initially charged with smuggling foreigners into the country, and the Cambodians were charged with illegal entry