Chaowalit Thongduang: Thailand asserts active extradition treaty with Indonesia

Thailand‘s Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) asserted yesterday, December 5, that the country has an active extradition treaty with Indonesia.

This announcement arrived in light of an unverified report suggesting that notorious fugitive Chaowalit Thongduang, also known as Sia Paeng, might have escaped to the Southeast Asian country.

Prayuth Phetkhun, the OAG spokesperson, clarified that the attorney-general possesses the authority to request the extradition of any convicts who have absconded overseas, once their precise location has been confirmed by the police.

In the case of Chaowalit, the critical task of tracking and confirming his location falls upon the Royal Thai Police. Following this, the national police chief can urge the attorney-general to commence the extradition process.

Prayuth stated that if the country where the convict is hiding has an extradition treaty with Thailand, the OAG can move ahead. He further added that Thailand also maintains an extradition treaty with Malaysia, marking it as another potential refuge for Chaowalit.

In scenarios where the fugitive has escaped to a country without an extradition agreement with Thailand, Thai authorities can still appeal for his extradition under a reciprocal arrangement through the Foreign Ministry, Prayuth explained.

These details surfaced amid speculation about the whereabouts of Chaowalit. The unverified report proposed that Chaowalit might have escaped to Indonesia, allegedly journeying via the La Ngu district in Satun on a speedboat, reported Bangkok Post.

Chaowalit, who was serving a prison sentence for attempted murder and faced numerous other criminal charges, has been on the run since he escaped from Maharaj Nakhon Si Thammarat Hospital on October 22. He was brought to the hospital for dental treatment but managed to escape into the Banthad mountain range, stretching across Phatthalung, Trang, and Satun provinces.

Despite intensive manhunt efforts, Chaowalit has successfully evaded capture and released video clips asserting his unfair treatment. He claimed that despite the involvement of several other suspects, he was the sole individual sentenced. He also alleged that his bail appeal was not fairly processed.