Thai inmate seeks help in secret letter after alleged guard abuse
The family of an inmate at Khaobin Prison, in the central province of Ratchaburi, sought justice and a transparent investigation from the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) after prison guards allegedly abused him and others.
The 52 year old Thai woman raised allegations of physical abuse against her 30 year old son, who is serving a 32-year sentence for a drug-related offence, with the well-known lawyer, Ronnarong Kaewphet. She expressed fears that her son might die in prison, similar to the former high-ranking police officer, Joe Ferrari.
The mother explained that her son first spoke about the abuse on December 30. He told her that he thought he would die during the assault and would never see her or other family members again. He could not provide many details about the assaults as their meeting was under surveillance.
The woman last visited her son on January 13 and noticed that he appeared thinner than before. He revealed that his food portions had been reduced as punishment. Moreover, he was banned from meeting his family three months later as a penalty for his involvement in an altercation in the prison.
The mother admitted that her son was involved in a physical altercation in the jail but felt that the punishment inflicted by the guards was excessively harsh.
Help-seeking letter
The prison guards reportedly stomped on each involved inmate while wearing combat boots, tied them up with cable ties, and forced them to crawl on the ground to their accommodation. Any inmate who moved too slowly was thrown forcefully into the accommodation by the guards.
Recently, one of the inmates involved in the altercation was released from prison and delivered a small letter to the mother, which she said was from her son. The details of the abuse endured in prison were written on a small piece of paper.
The released inmate also displayed wounds and bruises sustained from physical abuse in jail to the mother and the public as evidence that the excessive punishment indeed occurred. He also filed complaints against all the guards involved in the abuse.
Ronnarong accompanied the mother to the DSI headquarters yesterday, March 12, to request an investigation into the abuse.
He clarified that he was not concluding that the prison guards were at fault but urged them and the relevant government officials to clarify the matter to the public.
Regarding the update on Ferrari’s case, the Department of Corrections maintained that he committed suicide by hanging himself with a towel and that it was not a fatal assault by the prison guards.
The Royal Thai Police (RTP) reported today, March 13, that only Joe’s DNA was found on the towel, dismissing any suggestion that the suicide was staged to cover up a murder.
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