Police officers dismissed over illegal release of Chinese fugitives
Thai authorities are launching a major nationwide audit after five police officers were caught exploiting legal loopholes to help wanted Chinese nationals vanish from immigration custody.
- Five Metropolitan Police Bureau officers are under investigation for accepting bribes to illegally release Chinese fugitives from immigration detention.
- The officers allegedly filed false charges to "borrow" detainees for questioning and then failed to return them, allowing the fugitives to evade deportation.
- As a result of the investigation, one officer has been officially dismissed, while the other four face severe disciplinary and criminal proceedings with their cases forwarded to the National Anti-Corruption Commission.
The Royal Thai Police (RTP) held a high-level press conference on Friday (January 16) to address a major corruption investigation involving the illegal release of Chinese detainees.
Led by Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiwphan, Deputy Inspector General, alongside senior officials from the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) and the Immigration Bureau (IB), the briefing detailed the systemic failure and criminal misconduct of several officers.
The Case of Ma Guangxu
The investigation was triggered in January 2025 following an inquiry from the Chinese Embassy regarding Ma Guangxu (also known as Ah Hang).
Ma, a suspect wanted by Chinese authorities, disappeared after being taken from an immigration detention centre under the pretext of further legal proceedings in Thailand.
Despite his completed sentence in Thailand, he was never deported as required.
Investigation Findings and Disciplinary Actions
Following an order from Pol Gen Kitrat Phanphet, Commissioner General of the Royal Thai Police, an internal probe uncovered a pattern of misconduct between 2021 and 2025:
- Investigating officers allegedly filed false fraud charges and obtained court warrants for Chinese detainees already in immigration custody. This allowed them to "borrow" the detainees for questioning. However, once released into their custody, the officers failed to return the suspects to the Immigration Bureau.
- Investigations identified 131 detainees who were removed from immigration custody during this period.
- Five officers from the Metropolitan Police Bureau (ranging from Police Captain to Police Lieutenant Colonel) are currently under investigation for accepting bribes.
- Pol Capt Chaiya has been officially dismissed from the force. The remaining four officers face severe disciplinary and criminal proceedings, with their cases forwarded to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).
National Policy Reform
Kitrat has ordered a nationwide audit of all immigration releases over the past 10 years. The RTP has divided the corrective mission into five key areas:
- Investigating systemic corruption and external links to lawyers and agents.
- Auditing the detention tracking system from 2018 to the present.
- Mandating all regional bureaus to strictly verify the status of detainees requested for further prosecution.
- Tightening regulations regarding the freezing and transferring of foreign suspects.
- Updating the CRIMES database and arrest warrant systems to prevent data tampering.
"Whether these syndicates are exploiting a loophole or operating with a criminal mindset, I affirm that every single step of the process must be thoroughly scrutinised. We are committed to uncovering how these gaps were used," Trairong said.
"If wrongdoing is proven, it will be treated as the fabrication of evidence to create false legal cases from the onset, specifically designed to help suspects evade deportation. However, at this stage, we cannot conclude yet, as we must ensure fairness to all parties involved," he added.
