Threatening letter to Songkhla prosecutor prompts police investigation

A life-threatening letter directed at a provincial Songkhla prosecutor sparked a police investigation yesterday. The letter was a threat from a friend of 37 year old Chaowalit Thongduang, also known as Sia Paeng Na Nod. Chaowalit escaped from Nakhon Si Thammarat Hospital on October 22, where he was detained after a dental treatment.

The handwritten letter, composed with a blue pen, was folded and stapled. It was delivered directly to the Provincial Court Prosecution Office in the Bo Yang district of Muaeng Songkhla. The note, dated October 27, threatened the prosecutor with death unless he returned the money to Chaowalit.

The letter’s chilling message to the Songkhla prosecutor included the word die, accompanied by a sketch of a firearm. Despite the threatening nature, the prosecutor maintained that he had no personal connection with the escaped detainee. He had been relocated to work in Songkhla from the Office of Juvenile and Family Prosecution in Phatthalung in April, reported Bangkok Post.

In a related development, one of Chaowalit’s close associates, Sutiwas Khunnarong, was apprehended by the Hanuman task force and provincial police investigation team. Sutiwas, also known as Non Thung Lan, had been hiding out in the Don Tako district of Ratchaburi’s Muang. The 28 year old was transferred to the Nakhon Si Thammarat provincial police station yesterday. He confessed to having met Chaowalit briefly before the latter escaped across the Malaysian border.

The deputy commander of Nakhon Si Thammarat police, Pol. Col. Nutthawut Thongthip informed that Chaowalit could surrender at any police station upon his return to Thailand.

In their pursuit of Chaowalit, the police visited Patthalung’s Sri Nakharin district and discovered two more individuals linked to the escape. One of them had parked the pickup truck that Chaowalit used to flee to the border. This suspect was captured at the Yai Klui Monastery in Rom Muang, a district in Phatthalung.

Simultaneously, the Corrections Department is conducting an internal investigation into Chaowalit’s escape, as stated by Deputy Justice Permanent Secretary, Sahakarn Petchnarin.