Cruel Thai bureaucrats deported a model schoolboy allegedly for having a Cambodian mother amid ongoing border clashes with neighbouring Cambodia.

Tong-Heng Rasamey, 13, was taken away by police after the flag-raising ceremony at his school in Surin province on Thursday morning.

He and his mother, Mom, 41, were detained for reportedly staying in the country illegally.

Heartbreaking footage shows the youngster, still in his Boy Scouts uniform, sniffling and sobbing after learning he was being deported from Thailand.

He reportedly cannot speak or read Khmer as he had reportedly been living in Thailand since childhood.

Police said the arrest came after cruel neighbours, in an act of misplaced patriotism, reported the family for being illegal migrants.

Police Colonel Sarawut Sriwithunsak, superintendent of the Buachet police station, said: 'The reason the child was detained was due to a complaint about a foreign national in the area, so I instructed the investigation team to check.'

He said officers tracked down Mom, but she could not produce valid travel documents during interrogation.

Further investigations found that Tong-Heng had only a Cambodian birth certificate, and both of his parents were Cambodian.

Mom was reportedly remarried to Thai man Bai Phaopheng, 67, after she slipped through an illegal channel into Si Sa Ket province in 2018. Bai has since been providing for Tong-Heng's education.

Tong-Heng's teacher, Sopon Jongboriboon, described him as 'a star pupil who excelled in music, sports, and academics with a GPA of 4.00 in primary school'.

He said: 'Imagine what the mother and child will face after this, while those who reported them sleep soundly. Look at what you are doing to this 13-year-old—tearing him away from his family, his friends, and his teachers.

'Please stop persecuting innocent people, both in real life and on social media. By the way, the police did their job correctly because there was a complaint. Everyone sympathises with the situation, but the police must follow the law.'

Thai authorities on Thursday transported the mother and son to the Aranyaprathet border crossing in Sa Kaeo province for deportation.

However, Varawut Silpa-archa, Minister of Social Development and Human Security, said he coordinated with immigration authorities and the Surin social welfare centre to temporarily shelter the pair while the deportation process is carried out.

He said: 'From now on, it will be up to the relevant agencies to determine the next steps. However, the Ministry's role is to ensure that the child continues to receive an education and secure accommodation, in line with Article 22 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.'

Under the United Nations convention, governments must ensure that refugee children or those seeking refugee status must receive appropriate protection and humanitarian assistance.

Varawut added: 'While the investigation is ongoing, the child and mother will remain under the care and protection of the Ministry.'