BY PC Bureau
New Delhi, October 8, 2026 — A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in New Delhi has sentenced Thai national Willy Naruenartwanich, also known as Wuthikorn Naruenartwanich or Willy Naru, to six years’ imprisonment and fined him ₹5 lakh for his role in an international conspiracy to procure sophisticated arms and ammunition for the National Socialist Council of PC BureauNagaland (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN(IM).
Naruenartwanich was the first Thai national to be extradited to India to face trial. Thai authorities arrested him in Bangkok in August 2013 on the basis of an Interpol Red Corner Notice.
The Special Exclusive Court-03 for NIA Cases at Rouse Avenue District Courts pronounced the sentence on Wednesday, nearly 16 years after the case was registered.
The court had convicted the 70-year-old on September 24 under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 122 (collecting arms with intent to wage war against the Government of India) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The court ordered the sentences to run concurrently, resulting in an effective term of six years. While noting the seriousness of offences against the state, the judge took into account Naruenartwanich’s age and the period he had already spent in custody.
04 sentenced in NSCN (IM) Arms Procurement case https://t.co/YrNgab8xM9
— NIA India (@NIA_India) October 8, 2026
Chinese arms deal
The NIA registered the case on January 13, 2010, following an order of the Ministry of Home Affairs. The investigation centred on an alleged conspiracy by NSCN(IM) leaders, dating to 2007–08, to procure a large consignment of lethal weapons from Chinese sources to strengthen the group’s armed cadres and prepare for waging war against India.
According to the NIA, the proposed consignment comprised about 800 weapons, including roughly 600 AK-series rifles, 9mm sub-machine guns, light machine guns and pistols, along with one lakh rounds of ammunition.
The deal was valued at approximately $1.2 million, including $1 million for the weapons and $200,000 for transshipment.
Investigators said the proposed route was from a Chinese port, such as Beihai, by sea to the Cox’s Bazar region of Bangladesh and then overland into India’s Northeast.
Naruenartwanich, a Bangkok-based businessman who operated a spa, allegedly acted as a key middleman. He coordinated with Anthony Shimray, whom the NIA identified as NSCN(IM)’s chief arms procurer, and helped facilitate negotiations with representatives of a Chinese arms and ammunition company.
Investigators linked the Chinese supplier in their case to TCL/Xinshidai, which has been associated in reports with China’s state-owned Norinco group.
The NIA alleged that about $800,000 was paid as advance through Naruenartwanich.
The proposed transaction was eventually postponed in 2010 because of the situation in Bangladesh and Shimray’s arrest. No weapons were ultimately delivered.
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Shimray arrested, extradition follows
Shimray, a senior NSCN(IM) leader and nephew of group founder Thuingaleng Muivah, was arrested in Patna in October 2010 after entering India from Bangkok via Nepal.
He was chargesheeted in March 2011 along with Naruenartwanich, TR Calvin and Hangshi Ramson Tangkhul.
Shimray was granted bail in August 2016 amid the ongoing Indo-Naga peace process. He has since continued to hold senior positions in the NSCN(IM), including roles associated with the peace negotiations.
Reports indicate that some of the other accused remained absconding, while one died during the prolonged proceedings.
Naruenartwanich was the first Thai national to be extradited to India to face trial. Thai authorities arrested him in Bangkok in August 2013 on the basis of an Interpol Red Corner Notice.
A Thai court ordered his extradition in 2014, and his appeal was rejected in November 2015. He was subsequently handed over to the NIA and brought to India in December that year.
The more than 600-page judgment convicting him relied on evidence relating to meetings, foreign travel and communications that the court found established his role in the alleged arms procurement network.
The NSCN(IM), one of the most prominent insurgent organisations in India’s Northeast, has been under a ceasefire with the Indian government and engaged in formal peace negotiations since 1997. The talks culminated in the signing of the 2015 Framework Agreement.
Despite the peace process, Indian security agencies have for years alleged that the group maintained transnational arms procurement networks involving Chinese suppliers, intermediaries in Thailand and trafficking routes through Bangladesh and Myanmar. Such networks have been traced by investigators to the wider
