Clerk in bribe case to be summoned to court

BANGKOK (The Nation): The Supreme Court fact-finding committee on the 2-million-baht bribery scandal will later this week summon the lawyer’s clerk who allegedly handed a bag containing the money to a senior court official, a source said yesterday.

The probe team, which consists of three Supreme Court judges, has spoken to the official in question, who said the clerk gave her a green paper bag while they were alone in the recreation room for lawyers at the Supreme Court.

“I have just returned from abroad. I see that you and your colleagues are tired from work. This is for you guys to share,” the clerk was quoted as saying.

The court official told the probe panel that she was startled to discover 2 million baht inside the bag. She later reported the incident to her supervisor. The room is not fitted with any closed-circuit cameras, but the banknotes inside the bag were photographed.

The panel will summon the clerk, whose boss works for a politician who has a case against him lodged with the court, for questioning this week, the source said. Findings from the investigation could lead to charges of infringement on the court’s authority and bribing a court official, according to the source.

Meanwhile, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is one of the three politicians facing cases in the Supreme Court, yesterday refused to answer reporters’ questions about the bribery scandal.

“On June 21, Mars will be moving away,” Thaksin said.

In astrology, Mars is the god of war and represents soldiers and weapons.

“After July 2, confusion in the country will ease. Let’s be patient. We will have headaches until July 2,” he said. “My moral support is for Thai people suffering from problems.”