Auto Channel used at Nong Khai customs checkpoint

NONG KHAI, May 28 (TNA) -- The Immigration Bureau today starts using an Auto Channel at the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge at Nong Khai which crosses the Mekong River marking the border between Thailand and Laos to prevent fake passports and criminals. Presiding over the using of the Auto Channel system, Police Lt Gen Natthorn Phraohsunthorn, Commissioner of Thai Immigration Bureau, said Nong Khai is the first land border which his office uses the system. On average, 15,000 persons crosses this large land border daily, he said, adding that this system will connect with criminal record and immigration authorities will know immediately whether the person has arrest warrant or whether he uses a fake passport. A similar system is now being used at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport and it is proved to perform efficiently, he said. Pol Lt Gen Natthorn said the same system will be later used at major border checkpoints such as Songkhla, Sa Kaeo and Aranyaprathet and they will be initially used with Thai criminals because police already have sufficient criminal records. (TNA)