Chiang rai: Thai police on Friday escorted a robbery suspect to the Myanmar border to identify where he allegedly handed over stolen gold worth more than 10 million baht ($320,000), ending a 19-day manhunt for the perpetrator dubbed the "Straw Hat Thief."

According to Thai News Agency, the suspect, 29-year-old Jalor Anu, was arrested Thursday at the Mae Suai Dam in Chiang Rai province while attempting to flee across the border. He is accused of the armed robbery of a gold shop in a Sukhumvit department store on January 30, where 198 baht-weight of gold and 170,000 baht in cash were stolen. Police tracked the suspect through a three-week operation, previously recovering a getaway motorcycle from a canal and a firearm discarded under a bridge in Bangkok.

During the investigation in Mae Sai district, Jalor reportedly confessed to delivering the stolen gold to an accomplice in Myanmar via a natural forest trail. The suspect claimed he received an initial payment of 200,000 baht and was scheduled to receive the remainder in March. According to police, the motive was driven by heavy online gambling debts that had left the suspect bankrupt, prompting him to plan the heist.

On Friday afternoon, Deputy Metropolitan Police Commissioner Pol. Maj. Gen. Noppasil Poonsawat escorted the suspect back to Bangkok by air for further interrogation by the Metropolitan Police Chief. Jalor is scheduled to participate in a crime reenactment at the gold shop and a Sukhumvit apartment he allegedly rented to plan the robbery and his subsequent escape.