VZCZCXYZ0005
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBK #0672/01 0761045
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 171045Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6420
INFO RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RHMCSUU/FBI WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS BANGKOK 000672 
 
SIPDIS 
 
PM/DTCC - BLUE LANTERN COORDINATOR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETTC KOMC TH
SUBJECT: BLUE LANTERN POST-SHIPMENT END USE CHECK ON 
LICENSE 050089992 
 
REF: STATE 3393 
 
¶1. (U) According to the Thai Ministry of Commerce, P. Wang 
Burapa Firearms, Ltd. was listed: 
 
Registration No. 0103511019183 
Registered Date: December 11, 1968 
Status: Limited Partnership 
Capital Registration: 210,000 baht 
Partners: Amporn Kohphet with an investment of 170,000 baht, 
Phatcharavalai Muenphakdi with an investment of 10,000 baht, 
Amnart Tanthongyin with an investment of 10,000 baht, and 
Pussadee Kohphet with an investment of 20,000 baht. The 
managing partner is Pussadee Kohphet. 
Company Location: 15 Burapa Rd., Wang Burapa Phirom 
Sub-District, Phra Nakhon District, Bangkok 
The company has submitted annual financial reports for 
1999-2007. 
Purpose of Company: To import and sell guns and ammunition. 
 
¶2. (U) The company was listed in the telephone directory as 
02-222-6949, as stated reftel.  Another number, 02-222-2353, 
belongs to Prapa Firearms Ltd under the same address as P. 
Wang Burapa (PWB).  PWB told POL FSN that the latter number 
originally belonged to the PWB owner who at that time owned 
the gun shop named Prapa.  The owner later sold Prapa, but 
has kept the phone number and has moved it to the PWB without 
changing the name of subscriber.  The business address was 
confirmed as stated reftel, 
 
¶3. (U) POL FSN January 27 visited the PWB shop.  The shop was 
a concrete, three and a half story shop house in busy 
business area of Bangkok.  Amporn Kohphet confirmed the 
purchase and import of 200 pistols as described reftel. 
 
¶4. (U) Amporn presented the following documents: 
 
- Two permits: one for possession of weapons and the other 
for sale of weapons, both No. 200/2551, issued by the 
Department of Provincial Administration-Ministry of Interior, 
beginning November 1, 2008, to expire October 31, 2009. 
 
- P. Wang Burapa's purchase order to Kimber, No. 
6/2551-P.WANG, dated February 2, 2008, with details of 
pistols in accordance with reftel.  This document did not 
have the signature of the Pussadee Kohphet, the managing 
partner.  A staff at PWB said she signed the original and 
sent to Kimber. 
 
- A permit for import of one hundred .45 pistols, under the 
name of Pol. Lt. Gen. Rachot Yensuang, Commissioner of Police 
Region 1, who has assigned PWB to import the weapons via No. 
13 13/2550 (not 2551 as stated reftel), beginning December 
25, 2007, expiring December 24, 2008, issued by Department of 
Provincial Administration-Ministry of Interior.  A permit for 
import of one hundred .45 pistols, under the name of Pol. Lt. 
Gen. Bunchop Khongnai, Commissioner of Police Region 4, who 
assigned PWB to import via No. 1/2551, beginning January 2, 
2008, expiring January 1, 2009, issued by Department of 
Provincial Administration-Ministry of Interior.  Amporn said 
both lots of pistols (two hundred pieces) had arrived at 
Suvarnabhumi International Airport July 2, 2008 and were 
released to PWB the same day.  The pistols were imported to 
sell to the Welfare Project of the Royal Thai Police.  The 
serial numbers of all two hundred pistols were listed. 
 
- An invoice No. 442589, issued by Kimber and dated April 30, 
2008, Ref. No. 519258065, for PWB Purchase Order No. 
6/2551-P.WANG.  The invoice describes the details of two 
hundred pistols and two hundred magazines sold to PWB.  A set 
of fifty magazines (Part ID 1000089) was not stated reftel. 
 
- PWB could not provide me copies of DSP-83s and stated that 
the DSP-83s had been sent to Kimber and no copies had been 
made.  Amporn stated all pistols had been delivered to the 
respective police officers in 2008 but that PWB did not know 
the names of the final users. 
 
¶5. (U) The shop had five staff and a CCTV system, but there 
were no smoke detection or water-sprinkler systems.  The 
front and back gates were the iron gates.  The shop claimed 
to have two night guards.  The upper floors are the living 
quarters for someone stay.  The shop had three old iron safes 
with double locks. 
 
¶6. (U) POL FSN January 27 visited the Royal Thai Police 
Welfare Division and met Deputy Superintendent Pol. Lt. Col. 
 
Sunisa and Inspector Pol. Maj. Panchanat.  They said that PWB 
had obtained a special gun quota directly from the former 
Interior Minister Khongsak Wanthana with the assistance of 
former Police Commissioner-General Pol. Gen. Seriphisut 
Temiyawet and former Assistant Police Commissioner-General 
Police General Achirawit Suwanphesat.  The full quota was for 
14,948 pistols to be sold to police officers under the 
"Weapon Procurement Project for the Welfare of Police 
Officers".  The reftel two hundred pistols was probably a 
portion of the quota.  However, the purchase, import, sale, 
and delivery of these guns did not involve the Police Welfare 
Division.  The sale would have been conducted directly to 
police officers.  The Police Welfare Division had provided 
PWB the original list of potential police buyers and had been 
suspicious as some buyers are listed by first name only, some 
by last name only, and some did not have police ranks. 
 
¶7. (U) POL FSN visited Police Region 1 HQ in Bangkok and 
Police Region 4 HQ in Khon Kaen.  Pol. Lt. Col. Siriphon, 
Inspector of Welfare Section of Police Region 1, and Pol. Lt. 
Col. Nuanchan, Inspector of Welfare Section of Police Region 
4, said that their offices were not aware of the sale of 
these guns.  The sale was a direct sale between PWB and the 
police officers via approval of the police commissioners. 
 
¶8. (U) POL FSN February 13 visited the IT section of Bureau 
of Registration Administration that supervises gun possession 
records.  In a random sample of sixty numbers to verify 
owners only two names were found.  The owners of these 
pistols, KU59538 and KU64200, were policemen.  A further 
check of the remaining 140 numbers showed nine results. 
Seven belonged to policemen and the other two appeared to be 
owned by civilians.  The IT section stated that records not 
found were likely the result of the pistols not being 
delivered or that the pistols had been delivered but the 
records had not yet been put into the computer system.  For 
records that indicated the owner to be a civilian, the 
section said the owner could be a civilian or it they could 
be that police officers did not indicate their police ranks 
when registering the gun. 
JOHN