Stories behind Mekong murder investigation
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E-mail Xinhua, September 19, 2012
HUNTING DOWN NAW KHAM
After discovering that Naw Kham was hiding in a village in Laos's Boqiao province, Chinese and Laotian police searched the village on Dec. 6, finding one of the ringleader's mistresses, ammunition and narcotics. However, the head of the village prohibited them from searching as night fell, leaving Naw Kham to escape to Myanmar during the night.
However, police later found the leader's new enclave: a location hidden deep in the forests of Myanmar, protected by armed guards and land mines. Although police attempted to extract him from his hideout, Naw Kham still managed to evade arrest.
The manhunt was effectively mired until Hsang Kham, the gang's second-in-command, was detained on April 20. Police interrogated him to obtain Naw Kham's latest whereabouts.
"We changed our tactics this time," said Liu Yuejin, leader of the police team set up to crack the case. "We kept the mission secret and ordered the arrest at the last minute."
In the meantime, China pushed Myanmar to make greater efforts to hunt down the gangs, resulting in Naw Kham re-entering Laos. Police stationed at the border captured Naw Kham and two gang members after they went ashore on April 25.
On May 10, after half a month of negotiations, Naw Kham was officially transferred to Chinese police by Laos authorities.
Naw Kham's gang was also broken up, with several members involved in the attack captured by police, including Weng Mie, the gang's fourth-in-command.
In July, Meng Jianzhu visited Thailand, Laos and Myanmar and reached a consensus with the leaders of the three countries on investigating the case and strengthening cooperation in law enforcement.
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