Official’s land holdings worth B100 million

PHUKET: Investigators looking into Phuket’s land title scams have discovered that the former Chief of the Kathu District Land Office, Bunchoo Limraksasin, who was caught by police in Ranong on July 21, owns land worth more than 100 million baht. Checks have also revealed that Bunchoo’s former personal secretary has bank account balances in excess of 28 million baht. Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette that officers from Phuket Town Police Station and from the Phuket Provincial Land Office yesterday inspected some of the 80 properties in Kathu, Patong and Kamala belonging to Bunchoo. They also checked the financial statements of Bunchoo’s holdings at various Phuket banks. One of the places officials searched yesterday afternoon was the home of Bunchoo’s former secretary, Mena Kala, 31, at Land & Houses Park in Chalong. K. Mena wasn’t at the house at the time of the search, but she had been questioned by police on Saturday and Sunday, when she admitted to having 28 million baht in bank deposits. Her salary at the Land Office was about 4,000 baht a month. Police were continuing to investigate the source of her deposits, Col Paween said. Bunchoo is among three land officials accused of producing fake title deeds. Another, Uru Thipthep, was caught by police on July 13. A third, former provincial land registrar Thawatchai Anukul, is still on the run.