Bangkok: NACC has apprehended Suthee Chuemthaisong, marking him as the 16th defendant in the G2G rice sales case that transpired during the administration of former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Suthee has been sentenced to a 32-year imprisonment term and is required to pay compensation amounting to 16,912,128,273.66 baht, in addition to interest.
According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Saroj Phuengramphan, the Secretary-General of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), disclosed that officers from the NACC Office Region 1 and Region 4, in collaboration with the News Analysis and Special Equipment Division of the Investigation Division of the Provincial Police Region 4, successfully apprehended Mr. Suthee Chuemthaisong. This arrest follows an arrest warrant issued by the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions No. 20/2562 dated May 28, 2019. Mr. Suthee was found guilty under multiple sections of the 1999 Act on Offenses Related to Bidding to Government Agencies, the Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand, and the Criminal Code. His offenses, which violated multiple laws, have been consolidated for punishment under the section with the heaviest penalty, resulting in a cumulative 32-year prison sentence.
Additionally, Mr. Suthee Chuemthaisong is implicated under an arrest warrant from the Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases, Region 1, No. 20/2565 dated October 28, 2565. This pertains to offenses under the Act on Offenses Relating to Bidding to State Agencies, involving multiple sections of the Criminal Code, and the Organic Act on the Prevention and Suppression of Corruption. These charges include being an accomplice of an official under various legislative frameworks.
The pursuit of Mr. Suthee Chuemthaisong by the authorities spanned over a decade, beginning in 2015. It was discovered that Mr. Suthee evaded capture by residing with his unregistered wife in Village No. 7, Nong Krung Sri Village, Nong Phai Lom Subdistrict, Nong Song Hong District, Khon Kaen Province. Law enforcement obtained a search warrant from the Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases Region 4, leading to a search of the premises where Mr. Suthee was found concealed in a banana grove. Officers executed the arrest in accordance with the Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act B.E. 2565 and related legal procedures, transferring Mr. Suthee to the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions to serve his sentence.