Police:Discoverers must return gold to the state

BANGKOK, May 31 (TNA) - Police in Songkhla Province in the Thai South have asked local goldsmiths not to buy gold found by villagers at an oil palm plantation in Phatthalung Province, also in the Thai South, and have also asked prospectors to return gold to the state, otherwise they could, each, face a maximum seven-year imprisonment or a fine of 700,000 baht or both. However, no gold items have been sold to gold shops in Songkhla by gold prospectors so far. Gold found at the palm plantation at a village in Phatthalung’s Khao Chaison District is now considered as national treasure. In order to clear a misunderstanding, police briefed goldsmiths in Songkhla on Saturday not to buy gold from the prospectors and they should also inform police if a gold prospector approached them. Police plan to set up a temporary office in the area, where gold is found, and to inform the villagers to return gold they found to the state in exchange for a cash reward. A large number of gold prospectors remain in the area with a hope that they find the ancient gold, which could improve their livelihood. (TNA)