Chaiwat Limlikit-aksorn’s bitter fall from ‘Hero of Kaeng Krachan’ to pension-less retiree

Once praised for leading a gruelling mission to rescue helicopter crash victims, then vilified over the disappearance of a Karen activist, Chaiwat Limlikit-aksorn now finds himself mired in yet another scandal – and facing possible financial ruin in his twilight years.

Earlier this month, Jatuporn Buruspat, permanent secretary for the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, signed an order retroactively dismissing Chaiwat from government service without pension rights.

The punishment comes after the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) found Chaiwat guilty of corruption.

He must also repay all pension benefits received since he retired on September 30 last year.

“This is too much,” a dismayed Chaiwat complained. “At worst, I should have been dismissed with full pension rights, given my long service with the ministry.”

Protesting his innocence, Chaiwat claimed the NACC reached its decision without allowing him to mount a proper defence.

“I’ve never engaged in corruption. I wouldn’t have risked my reputation,” he said, vowing to challenge Jatuporn’s order at the Administrative Court via the Merit System Protection Commission.

Whistleblower or wrongdoer?

On September 26, 2023, the NACC found Chaiwat guilty of awarding a 3.53-million-baht contract to build a park-protection unit office in exchange for a bribe in 2013.

According to the NACC, he manipulated the bidding process and accepted a 1-million-baht kickback. Chaiwat claimed the cheque in question was for repayment of a personal debt. He also denied signing off on the completed project without having authorised engineers inspect the work. The NACC cited several problems with the final construction.

The verdict came despite Chaiwat cooperating with the NACC in a 2022 sting operation that led to the arrest of Rutchada Suriyakul na Ayutya, then-director general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP).

Chaiwat had filed the complaint and helped officers uncover nearly 5 million baht in cash hidden in Rutchada’s office.

A career of highs and lows

Born in 1964, Chaiwat earned a degree from Kasetsart University’s Faculty of Forestry before joining the DNP, where he rose rapidly through the ranks after leading forest-protection initiatives.

He was appointed chief of Cha-am Forest Park before becoming head of Kaeng Krachan National Park in October 2008. Spanning 2,915 kilometres in Phetchaburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan provinces, Kaeng Krachan is Thailand’s largest national park.

Chaiwat also gained credit for helping the Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex, parts of which are I'm Ratchaburi province, win UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2021.

He first caught national attention in 2011 when he guided rangers through treacherous terrain to recover bodies from a helicopter crash – a mission that won him the nickname “Hero of Kaeng Krachan” and a ministry award for outstanding civil service.

The acclaim, however, was short-lived. Later that same year, Chaiwat allegedly led a team that set fire to a long-standing Karen village in the forest.

Tensions between his team and the forest dwellers deepened, culminating in the 2014 disappearance of Karen activist Porlajee “Billy” Rakchongcharoen, who was last seen in Chaiwat’s custody.

In 2021, Chaiwat was suspended from duty for a year over the destruction of Karen homes and evictions. He was formally dismissed in 2022, though retained full pension rights.

Yet by February 2023, Chaiwat had made his way back into civil service, taking over as chief of the Office of National Parks, overseeing all 155 national parks across Thailand.

Seven months later, on September 28, Chaiwat was sentenced to three years in prison for dereliction of duty over his failure to hand Porlajee to police after detaining him for allegedly harvesting wild honey.

Porlajee’s charred remains were allegedly discovered in 2019 inside a submerged oil drum at Kaeng Krachan, but Chaiwat was cleared of murder charges due to insufficient evidence. No DNA proof has been found yet and Porlajee is still considered missing.

Despite the guilty verdict, Chaiwat was allowed to serve out his term until retiring in 2024, as the verdict was not considered a conviction.