Foreigners who have been issued with a Certificate Of Entry to Thailand are now required to download the ThailandPlus app prior to their arrival, according to the Government Public Relations Department.

Announced last October, the ThailandPlus tracking application is intended to create confidence among foreign tourists about their health and safety while on holiday together with containing the spread of COVID-19.

ThailandPlus functions like the Mor Chana app using GPS and Bluetooth for track and trace in addition to linking with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to log information including certificate of entry details.

The whereabouts of all tourists with the app installed will be known throughout their stay and allow authorities to immediately alert visitors if they have come into any high-risk situations or environments.

Authorities said the application would not infringe on any users privacy and is intended only to combat the spread of COVID-19.

Thai embassies and consulates overseas will provide visitors with information about how to download and use the ThailandPlus app.

A 28-year-old Kyrgyzstan man was found dead at an abandoned hotel in the Thalang district of Phuket in the early hours of Saturday, according to police.

The body of the unnamed man was found hanged by officers from Thalang police station at around 1.30am after being alerted by his younger brother.

Local media report the man went out on Friday night and made a video call to his wife overseas before taking his own life.

His younger brother went searching for the man after he failed to come home or answer his mobile.

No foul play is suspected.

The body was sent to Thalang Hospital for a post-mortem examination.

A Chinese man was arrested after he was allegedly caught selling machine guns over Instagram.

Police raided the rented apartment of Wu Qiang, 37, where they reportedly found an arsenal of illegal weapons.

He was lead away in handcuffs from the home in Samut Prakan on Thursday afternoon (Feb 18).

Officers seized nine unregistered assault rifles, two explosives, and boxes containing 12,000 bullets after searching the place.

More than 40 assorted gun accessories including tools used to make weapons were also allegedly found inside the room.

Aside from the firearms, police said they found plastic packets containing a white substance identified as methamphetamine weighing 5 grams lying on the floor.

Wu Qiang had reportedly been selling the weapons online through an Instagram account that he managed.

Police Lieutenant General Kornchai Klaikeung said undercover cops had verified the reports about his online store before they conducted the raid.

He said: ‘This man was very good at selling with his Master’s Degree in Marketing. He made transactions smoothly and was hard to catch.

‘However, he still will not be able to escape the law. We are looking for other people who might be connected to his activity.’

Police are now investigating where the Chinese man allegedly received his supply from and to wh he had distributed to before.

All of the seized guns were taken to the police station to be held as evidence. Forensics officers were also examining the weapons to find fingerprints.