A suspect of the recent Bangkok blast
A suspect of the recent Bangkok blast arrested last week near the border with Cambodia is taken to the Metropolitan Police Bureau in central Bangkok, Thailand, September 7, 2015. The August 17 attack on a Bangkok Hindu shrine killed 20 people and injured more than 100. Reuters/Chaiwat Subprasom

The prime suspect of the blast that shook Bangkok in August confessed his guilt when the police asked him if he was involved in the explosions at Erawan shrine. The suspect, identified by the police as Yusufu Mierili, was arrested near the Thai-Cambodia border on Sep. 1 and was brought to police custody on Monday after military interrogations last week.

The police asked him to acknowledge his crime in a packed room full of media personnel and confess whether he was guilty of the co-possession of illegal explosives charge, as provided in his arrest warrant. Meirili replied through a translator and said, “Guilty.” It was, however, still unclear if the confession will have a legal weight or not as the Bangkok blast suspect has not been formally charged yet.

Twenty people were killed and over 120 people were injured in the Bangkok blast on Aug. 17 at the popular Erawan shrine. Police investigation reports suggest that DNA or fingerprints of the suspect were found in the two apartments that were raided last week. Gunpowder content was also found there. Both apartments, according to the police, had bomb-making materials in them and one of them contained over 200 fake Turkish passports.

In a statement last week, police said that Meirili, who appeared to place a knapsack at the shrine, is suspected more to be a conspirator than being a bomber. Thai authorities suggested that the blast was the result of forceful removal of around 100 ethnic Uighurs to China from Thailand in July.

Another suspect was arrested on Aug. 29 from one of the raided apartments. He was identified as Adem Karadak, who was transferred to the police custody on Friday after a week’s military interrogation. Fake Turkish passport was found from him, the police stated.

The nationality of both the suspects are still unknown, but police confirmed that Mierili has a Chinese passport and hence it is suggested that he belonged to the western region of Xinjiang, which is home to the Turkish-speaking people, Uighurs.

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