5 Thai police accused of illegally detaining and extorting Thai man

A Thai man accused five officers from Pabon Police Station in the southern province of Phattalung of unlawfully detaining him, charging him with illegal gun possession, and extorting 50,000 baht from him.

Channel 7 received a complaint from a 50 year old man named Tu who claimed to be a victim of corrupt police officers yesterday, December 13. Tu recounted that five officers from Pabon Police Station conducted a raid on a small hut he used for resting after working on his pineapple plantation, where they discovered a shotgun.

Tu vehemently asserted that the firearm did not belong to him but to another individual named Thatsana Saengkeunun. According to Tu, Thatsana is a police spy in the area and asked to store the gun at Tu’s residence.

Tu claimed that he was charged with possessing a gun without a permit which would result in imprisonment for up to 10 years, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both. However, officers did not officially issue charges against him and asked him to pay them 50,000 baht to drop the case.

Tu refused, so the officers reduced the amount to 30,000 baht. Tu still refused to pay, saying he had no money, so he was given a further discount, leaving the bribe at 20,000 baht. His wife borrowed money from a relative and later gave it to the officers at the police station.

Tu was released, and the case was closed, but he perceived this as unjust. Suspecting that Thatsana might be colluding with the police to extort money from him, Tu decided to bring the matter to the attention of the media in pursuit of justice. In his report, Tu identified the police officers involved as Pong, Ying, Ban, Bee, and Jay.

Police transferred

Following the report, Provincial Police Region 9 Commander Piyawat Chalermsri stepped in to conduct an investigation. The accused police officers were suspended from their posts and transferred to work near senior officers as the investigation got underway.

Piyawat promised that the investigation would be completed within a week and that justice would be done for both parties.

Thatsana was reportedly summoned for questioning yesterday, December 13 but refused to give an interview to the media.

In a similar report, a Thai female drug suspect accused a police officer in the central province of Pathum Thani of extorting her 300,000 baht with a promise to drop the drug-related charges against herself and her boyfriend. She added that one of the officers forced her to have sex with him and demanded 30,000 baht more from her. This case is also under investigation.