DSI shifts gears, catches Thai man for swerving luxury car taxes

Department of Special Investigation (DSI) officers arrested a Thai man yesterday for evading 42 million baht in taxes on the import of nine luxury cars.

The DSI arrested the suspect, Chettha, at his accommodation, Uthong Mansion, in the Wang Thonglang district of Bangkok yesterday, May 29. Chettha is charged under Section 243 of the Customs Act for importing goods to avoid tax payments.

The penalty on the charge is imprisonment of up to 10 years, a fine of up to four times more expensive than the cost of the goods, or both. Chettha also faces charges under Section 83 of the Criminal Law, suggesting he did not act alone, though the identities of other suspects remain undisclosed.

DSI reported that Chettha and his associates imported nine luxury vehicles into Thailand without paying taxes, including: one Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid, 2 BMW Z4 sDrive20i, one Porsche Cayenne Diesel 3.0, one Porsche Cayenne S Hybrid, and four Porsche Boxster 2.7 Cabriolet.

In a separate incident, Consumer Protection Police Division (CPPD) officers arrested a Thai man named Songkran at his home in the Bang Khun Tien district in Bangkok yesterday for importing and illegally distributing untaxed tobacco to local vendors.

Songkran reportedly had been arrested and fined multiple times before, but he was not deterred by the punishment and continued his illegal business. Local cigarette smokers are more interested in imported tobacco because it is significantly cheaper than local brands.

In March, a Thai woman was arrested for tax evasion after the Revenue Department discovered her operating a gambling house in the southern province of Yala but had never paid taxes, causing a loss of over 76 million baht to the government.

However, officers did not clarify whether the woman would face any legal charges for the operation of the illegal gambling den or not.

Also in March, Economic Crime Suppression Division officers raided a Bangkok warehouse and seized 30,000 elephant pants imported from China without tax payment. The identity of the warehouse owner or importer remains unknown.