Thai officer implicated in online gambling assault: Programmer speaks out

A programmer who helped to manage an online gambling website allegedly suffered an assault following accusations made by a high-ranking Thai police officer and fellow member of the Police Cadet Class 47. The officer reportedly blamed the programmer for the drop in website revenue shortly before the assault. Police investigations into the incident led to the identification of the officer as the owner of three online gambling websites and further arrests.

The programmer, identified only by his first name, Cherdkiat, had been serving as an administrator for a gambling site. He claimed that he was abducted and assaulted by a group of people working for the website, who accused him of causing a drop in their online gambling business revenue. Cherdkiat accused a friend of Deputy Police Commissioner Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn from the Police Cadet Class 47 of ordering the assault, which left him injured, and threatening him and his family.

Investigations into the incident revealed that seven people were involved in the abduction and assault. Cherdkiat was allegedly taken from his residence in Chok Chai district of Nakhon Ratchasima province to a coffee shop in Chon Buri province, and robbed of 100,000 baht (US$2,870) before being released. Of the seven individuals involved, police have arrested five, and continue to search for the remaining two culprits who are at large, KhaoSod reported.

The case took a surprising turn when investigators discovered that the commander-in-chief ‘Ae’ owns three gambling websites, RRD789, BLUE789, and SEXY789. The websites were found to have been operating with more than 10 people directly involved in their management, running a well-structured system with clear responsibilities for administrators and accountants. Several high-ranking police officers were also found to be involved in the gambling business.

Despite the allegations being against his friend, Big Joke maintained that he would deal with the case without bias in a court of law, where initial charges related to providing and promoting online gambling, as well as money laundering charges, could be brought against nine suspects. Some 200 million baht (US$5,742,176) worth of assets have been frozen to await further investigation. Surachet insisted that any officer found guilty of wrongdoing would face full penalties, regardless of their friendships or connections.