SUNGAI GOLOK: Miniature firearms such as pen guns and cap pistols have become popular weapons among criminals in Sungai Golok sub-province in South Thailand.
Sungai Golok district police chief Police Colonel Jadsadavit Inprapan said the criminals, including those involved in drugs, had been using these weapons to fight their enemies.
He said some of these weapons were seized following a series of operations by the police in Sungai Golok town and its surrounding areas.
"Many criminals, as well as those involved in drug activities, nowadays continue to use pen guns and cap pistols.
"Apart from using them in drug deals, they also use the single-bullet pen gun and toy firearms to attack their rivals.
"Most of their rivals were Thai people, but there are also cases where they used the guns to attack their Malaysian rivals," he said.
Jadsadavit said both types of firearms, however, would cause only pain and injury to the victims. This was because the projectiles fired by the weapons were not powerful enough to pierce the body like real bullets.
He said the criminals chose to use such weapons because they were cheap and easy to carry undetected.
"For example, the pen gun is priced between RM200 to RM300 each and the cap gun is sold from RM300 onwards in Thailand.
"Some of them choose to buy the weapons online. Many online sellers offer these types of guns openly," he added.