Police chief says Bangkok bombing carried out by ‘a network’

Police were offering a one million baht (£17,935) reward “to whoever can give information that leads to the arrest of the suspect”.

Bangkok’s Southern Criminal Court later issued an arrest warrant for the unidentified “foreign” man, for charges including conspiracy to commit pre-mediated murder, as well as charges related to the possession of unauthorized explosives and weapons.

Police spokesperson Prawut Thawornsiri claimed the suspect could be of “mixed origin”. Police released several photos of the man, with and without the backpack, as well as a detailed sketch, and asked the public to provide information about him.

Authorities suspect the bomber was acting as part of a network, but have not yet established his nationality, according to police chief Somyot Poompanmoung.

Pictures taken by security cameras at the Hindu shrine where the bomb blast occurred late Monday showed the man entering the compound, leaving his bag under a bench, and then departing a few minutes before the explosion.

In a televised address, Thai prime minister Prayut Chan-ocha said the bombing was the “worst ever attack” on the country and he told the nation that the government will use “all investigative efforts to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice”.

“Our thoughts are with Vivian’s family and we are now working to support them in any way we can”.

Singapore also confirmed one of its nationals was among those killed in the attack.

Thai authorities still haven’t identified all of those killed in the bombing, many of whom were from other countries.

Reuters says the police described the suspect as being fair-skinned – he could be from the Middle East or Europe – and that he had dark hair, black glasses and a beard.

Bangkok was rattled again Tuesday when a bomb blew up at the Sathorn Pier, which is frequented by tourists, although no one was hurt.

As video footage was being released to the public Tuesday, a second blast shook the Thai capital.

The prime minister urged the main suspect to surrender to the police because he might otherwise “get killed to stop him from talking”.

A Thai lights a candle near the Erawan Shrine after an explosion in Bangkok.

Prayuth told reporters: “If the person wants to be safe, he should turn himself in”.

Two days after the rush-hour bombing at a shrine that has long been popular with tourists who visit Bangkok left 22 people dead and many others wounded, authorities continue to search for a suspect who left his backpack at the site.

The bomb was thrown from the Taksin Bridge and fell into the Chao Phraya River, where it exploded. “Officials will work out legal solutions to guarantee their safety”, he told the Bangkok Post.

Tommy Goh, 56, a Thai-Malaysian from Penang, said only a delayed taxi from his hotel spared him from being at the shrine around the time of the blast.