REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANGKOK -- A provincial court in southern Thailand had approved an arrest warrant for a senior army officer for alleged involvement in human trafficking, the national police chief said Monday.

The Na Thawi Provincial Court in Songkhla on Sunday granted the arrest warrant for Lt Gen Manus Kongpan, a senior Thai army adviser, Somyot Pumpunmuang was quoted by Bangkok Post as saying.

The Thai authorities have launched a crackdown on human trafficking since early May when mass graves believed to contain bodies of deceased Rohingya migrants from Myanmar were found in Thai-Malaysian border areas.

So far, arrest warrants have reportedly been issued against 82 human trafficking suspects, 51 of whom have been detained and the rest, including Manus, remain at large.

Army commander Udomdej Sitabutr said he had been informed of Manus being targeted by the police and the army had coordinated closely with the police in the case.

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