A 7-year-old girl abducted from Yala railway station on Tuesday has been rescued and the woman suspected of kidnapping her arrested, police said.
Pol Sub Lt Marut Wangkahad, the deputy crime suppression division inspector at Hat Yai Railway Police Station said Malinee Hayeehoh was arrested at her home in Pattani's tambon Panun, by Mayo district police yesterday.
The girl, Rasamee Mai, 7, was found in Ms Malinee's house and was safe, police said.
The arrest comes after an image of the suspect captured on CCTV footage at Yala railway station was circulated online.
Daeng Mai, 12, Rasamee's elder brother, told police his sister was abducted on April 19, after the family had arrived in Yala from Bangkok to attend a Muslim alms-giving event.
They were approached by Ms Malinee at Yala station after getting off the train, Daeng told police.
He said Ms Malinee asked his mother whether they had met before at Hua Lamphong Railway Station before asking whether they were hungry.
She then offered to take Rasamee, who said she was hungry, to get something to eat at a restaurant opposite the railway station, Daeng said.
Their unsuspecting mother, Nuayneeton Mai, 26, allowed the suspect to take Rasamee for lunch alone, he said.
The family waited for three hours for the pair to return but there was no sign of Ms Malinee or Rasamee, he added.
Ms Nuayneeton then told police her daughter had been abducted.
Police said investigators examining CCTV at the railway station were able to find footage of a woman taking the girl.
After posting the image on the internet, police were able to track the woman to her home in Pattani. Police have yet to establish a motive for the abduction or if anyone else was involved.