Thaksin prison inquiry widens: Court calls 20 additional witnesses

Supreme Court decided today to summon 20 more witnesses to appear at a series of six hearings in the inquiry into the Corrections Department’s enforcement of the prison sentences imposed on former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders has scheduled the hearings for July 4, 8, 15, 18, 25, 30.

The witnesses will include doctors and nurses who treated Thaksin in the Corrections Department’s and Police General hospitals.

The order was issued one hour into the initial hearing this morning, as part of the Court’s self-initiated inquiry into one of the most closely watched court sessions in Thailand.

Thaksin was sentenced to eight years in total, after returning from over a decade of self-imposed exile and being found guilty of the illegal extension of a 4 billion baht loan to the Myanmar government, his government’s illegal issuance of 2 and 3-digit lottery tickets and illegal amendments to a telecom concession, in favour his family’s business Shin Corp, which was later sold to Singapore’s Temasek Company.

The combined 8-year sentence was, however, reduced to one year by a Royal commutation on September 1st, 2023.

A team of lawyers, representing Thaksin and led by Winyat Chartmontri, arrived at the court at 8.15am this morning. Thaksin did not attend the hearing.

Earlier, Winyat had sought permission from the court to postpone the submission of evidence. The court agreed to extend the deadline to June 23.

Other people summoned to attend the hearing today included the warden of the Bangkok Remand Home, director-general of the Corrections Department, the chief doctor of the Police General Hospital, representatives of the National Anti-Corruption Commission and the Office of the Attorney-General.

Also present in court was former Democrat MP Charnchai Isarasenarak, who first took the case to the court, but it was rejected on the grounds that he was not an affected party in the three corruption cases.

An army of media are maintaining a vigil at the court to monitor the hearing.

Charnchai told the media that he came to attend the hearing out of personal interest, adding that he will submit additional evidence to the court if anything is missing.

The inquiry, which will take some time to conclude, relates to Thaksin’s 6-month stay at the Police General Hospital, without actually spending a day behind bars since his return to Thailand on August 22, 2023.

After the stay in the hospital, his remaining 6-month jail term was suspended and he was discharged from the hospital due to his old age and claimed medical conditions.