Cancer sufferer gets bulk of ‘embezzled’ donations returned to him
After 17 months of waiting, a 25-year-old Nakhon Phanom man stricken with nasopharynx and eye-socket cancer on Monday was finally able to get his hands on around Bt6 million, out of around Bt9 million-worth of donations that had poured in nationwide for him in 2016.
This was after his common-law ex-wife, who had taken the money and moved back to her parents, agreed to return the remaining money to him. Dechrit Khammungkhun also forgave Phatchareeporn Suwanphrom, 22, for reportedly having spent Bt3.2 million of the Bt9 million and gave the brand-new pickup truck that she had bought to their five-year-old daughter, who is under her care. Dechrit’s cancer was brought to the media attention by his father Prasert Khammungkhun, 58. Shortly afterwards, actor Bhin Bunluerit, also famous for helping the underprivileged and the ailing, visited the young man at home and narrated his story via a televised and radio show, leading to a huge number of donations coming Dechrit’s way. After the ex-wife absconded with the money to stay with her parents, Dechrit's family assigned a lawyer to sue her and her family in Nakhon Phanom Provincial Court. The hearing in a criminal lawsuit for embezzlement was due to commence on Monday, with a civil lawsuit scheduled to begin next Monday. However, just before the court session began on Monday morning, the Khammungkhun family’s lawyer negotiated with Dechrit, offering to return a total of Bt6.03 million remaining in two bank accounts – an offer that he accepted. Dechrit then told the judge that he forgave his ex-wife’s family for spending Bt3.2 million of the donated money, and gave the pickup purchased with some of the funds to his toddler daughter. In the afternoon, his former wife and her lawyer transferred the money to Dechrit and brought evidence of the transfer back to the court to present to the judge, leading to the charges against her and her parents being withdrawn. Dechrit said he would use the money to fund his cancer treatment at Bangkok’s Chulabhorn Hospital, where he was this week having an initial X-ray check-up.