Future Forward’s Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, the 40 year old leader of the new party, has cut short his trip to Europe over an ‘unexpected incident’

The Thai Election Commission yesterday unanimously resolved to press charges against Thanathorn over an alleged violation of Thai media shareholding rules.

Citing investigations by two EC panels, Sawang Boonmee, the EC deputy secretary-general, told a press conference that Thanathorn had allegedly violated the law by owning or holding 675,000 shares in V-Luck Media Company while registering as a candidate for the general election.

“Thanathorn’s share certificate number is from 1350001 to 2025000,” said Sawang, referring to the findings of two panels the EC had set up to investigate the case.

Thanathorn has been accused of contravening the electoral laws that state a shareholder in a media company is barred from contesting an election for member of parliament, according to the EC. The action is punishable by disqualification. The case was filed by Srisuwan Janya, secretary-general of the Association for Protection of the Thai Constitution, on March 25.

An EC source said the agency had yet to suspend Thanathorn’s right to contest in elections for one year or give him an “orange” card, as it was just an initial charge. Thanathorn will have seven days to give testimony or submit documents in his defence to the EC, Sawang said, adding his lawyers would also be allowed to witness the trial.

PHOTOS: tnews.co.th

A 28 year old woman, arrested in Chachoengsao, east of Bangkok, for allegedly selling her five year old daughter for sex, has revealed to police that the 52 year old customer who was allegedly caught in the act, and arrested at the time, was the young girl’s biological father.

The woman – whose name is being withheld to protect the victim’s identity – had reportedly taken the child twice weekly to be molested and raped by the customer, identified only as ‘Winai’. The mother allegedly received 200-300 baht each time.

The Nation reports that following their arrest on Sunday evening in an isolated location in Tambon Nong Yao in Phanom Sarakham district, the woman told police that she had had a sexual relationship with Winai – who was an already-married man with a daughter – and became pregnant with a baby girl.

She claimed that she had told Winai that the girl was his daughter, but the man had refused to accept that and so she had found another person to sign the birth certificate.

Sur-PRIIISE!

Troops and police have raided a nightclub in Bangkok’s Thon Buri district at 3am this morning and found that 38 of its patrons tested positive to illicit drug use.

The Bangkok office of the Internal Security Operations Command conducted the early morning raid against the Wave Pub (formerly known as the Poseidon Pub) on Ratchadapisek Road in Talad Plu sub-district. The unit was joined by ISOC officials and anti-narcotics police from the Talad Plu police station.

The pub was closed under its old name three years ago on similar charges.