Bangkok shrine

Somyot Poompanmoung's comments marked the first time authorities have publicly linked the Aug. 17 bombing to the smuggling of Uighurs, after weeks of hinting at it and saying only that they believe the attack was carried out by human traffickers angered by a crackdown on their network.

National police spokesman Lt. Gen. Prawut Thavornsiri said the two men "were most likely not involved."

The two men were seen in a security video standing in front of the prime suspect as he removed a backpack and placed it on a bench at the crowded shrine shortly before the blast, and police had believed they were accomplices.