Regime beefs up security after head of Taungup police deserts

By Admin 05 Apr 2024

DMG Newsroom
5 April 2024, Taungup

The Myanmar junta has increased its military presence at security checkpoints in Taungup, Arakan State, since Wednesday, after a senior police officer deserted, according to locals.

San Nyunt, head of the Taungup police station, fled at night on April 3 due to the conduct of the chief of the district police force, said a source close to the police station.

“We heard that the district police force chief had some pretty harsh words for the head of the Taungup police station. This is the reason why the head of the Taungup police station deserted,” the source added.

Junta soldiers have been interrogating passersby at three security checkpoints in Taungup as part of the manhunt for San Nyunt since his disappearance.

“I saw several junta soldiers and police in downtown Taungup. The families of the police from the Taungup police station are reportedly not allowed to go outside,” said a resident of Taungup.

The police officer is an Arakanese man who moved from Maei sub-township to Taungup, and has been serving for about three years.

Locals said they believed San Nyunt defected to the Arakan Army (AA), but DMG could not independently verify those reports.

There has been no fighting between the military and AA in Taungup, but the township has still been subject to the same militarisation and travel restrictions as others where hostilities are ongoing.