Over 3,600 foreign nationals were arrested or turned away from major Thai airports, including Chiang Mai, since the beginning of the year due to them having criminal records according to new figures from the Immigration Department.
The numbers, relating to Thailand’s largest airports by size – Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Hat Yai international airports – included 156 foreigners arrested who were listed as being wanted in other countries via the International Criminal Police Organization, better known as Interpol.
Most of those turned away, 3,400, were said to pose a security risk with the majority being from South Asian countries, with some suspected of trying to enter Thailand to work illegally.
Chiang Mai Airport had over 10.2 million passengers last year with 2.3 million of the passengers flying directly into the airport from overseas destinations, primarily in China.
