Top transport official moved, faces probes

Pol Lt-General Winai Thongsong said yesterday that two unidentified suspects had been arrested with Bt9 million in cash in their possession, joining two men who were arrested earlier in the week.

When news broke of the incident last week, it sounded like a typical heist. But the plot has thickened dramatically into a full-blown conspiracy theory with the first two suspects to be arrested having gone quiet after an announcement by police on Thursday evening that the men told them there was about Bt1 billion in cash kept in the house.

Speaking to the media yesterday on their way to a court hearing, Singthong Jaichomchuen, 44, and Saokaew Namwong, 59, appeared to have changed their stories, saying they never saw any money, only boxes with unknown contents. They were silent when asked about their previous statement to police that they and four other suspected burglars took Bt200 million and shared it among themselves before fleeing.

“I knew Saokaew for no more than a month through a middleman,” Singthong said, refusing to respond to questions about the Bt1-billion figure. 

Saokaew said: “I used to do odd jobs through contracts, then somebody asked me to take part in this. I never saw the money, just a lot of boxes,” he said.

Singthong thanked the many Facebook users and pages lauding his act, saying sarcastically that both he and Saokaew should be hired to work as policemen or state auditors to keep corrupt politicians and officials in check.

According to police statements made the day after the burglary, the six men entered Suphoth’s home on the night of November 12 and took some items away after tying up and gagging three maids. Suphoth, returning to the house an hour after the incident, told police and reporters that nothing had happened and that the incident was merely a misunderstanding.

Further news reports said the six men had carefully planned the heist, renting a nearby house a year earlier as their operations base before executing the plan on November 12, when Suphot and his family were out attending their daughter’s wedding party. The matter drew the attention of the public and the media after the suspects’ arrest early this week, when police released a statement quoting Singthong and Saokaew as saying that there was around Bt1 billion in cash kept in Suphoth’s house in Soi Lat Phrao 64.

Singthong was arrested at his Bangkok home with Bt500,000 in cash and two gold necklaces worth around Bt260,000, and Saokaew was arrested at his Chiang Rai home with more than Bt2.8 million in cash.

Pol Maj-General Ronnasil Phoosara, a senior investigator, dismissed as false the suspects’ statements about there being Bt1 billion in Suphoth’s home and having taken Bt200 million. “What was found and seized after their arrests was not as much as they claimed to have seen and taken,” he said.

“The suspects may have thought that there was plenty of money in the house. Police have checked suitcases they took and found only documents inside,” the officer said. He added that the suspects still at large were being hunted down but that some of them could have fled the country.

Before yesterday’s arrest of the unidentified third and fourth suspects, news reports citing police statements identified the four suspects then on the run as: alleged ringleader Weera Chualee, Phongsak Namwong, Somboon Riyathen and Khamnuan Meknoi. One of the burglars was said to hae told the maids: “Don’t worry, we are not going to harm you. We have come here to get back what your boss has taken from our boss.”

As a result, the National Anti Corruption Commission (NACC) and the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) are to launch graft probes against Suphoth Sublom on suspicion of unusual wealth, NACC member Klanarong Chantik and acting AMLO secretary-general Seehanart Prayoonrat said yesterday.

Klanarong said the probes would focus on three issues – whether Suphoth filed a false asset statement, whether he had stashed ill-gotten gains and whether he was involved in irregularities.

Reacting to the probe, Suphoth said the suspects were attempting to smear his reputation when they claimed he might have hidden as much as Bt1 billion at his home.

“The claim to have stolen Bt200 million is not true because I don’t have that much money,” he said.

He said it was impossible to hide Bt200 million or Bt1 billion at his home.

In earlier reports, he gave a police a statement that he found Bt5 million cash missing following the break-in.

At the police press conference held to present the initial two suspects, they were said to have had Bt2.8 million between them at the time of arrest.

Suphoth yesterday flatly denied speculation that he had taken bribes and stashed hundreds of millions of baht in cash inside his house.

It is the first time he has commented on the scandal, which he said had been plotted to discredit him, adding that the stolen cash was the dowry and cash gifts for his newlywed daughter. He said he had no idea of the exact amount.

“I didn’t stash cash at home. Just imagine: How would you stash Bt1 billion in cash? Where is the Bt200 million? It would take 200 bundles of Bt1,000 banknotes to make up the amount. And the thief said he took Bt200 million. If there was Bt1 billion, why didn’t he take it all?" he said.

Suphoth said had not officially been approached about an investigation by the NACC but was prepared to face one. He insisted that he did not interfere in any bidding processes, either at the State Railway of Thailand or the Mass Transit Rapid Authority of Thailand, at both of which he served as chairman. He also insisted that he had never made direct contact with private companies and that government project contracts are awarded in line with strict procedures.

Transport Minister Air Chief Marshal Sukampol Suwannathat said yesterday that he would discuss the burglary with Suphoth, who is one of his subordinates. However, he said he would not ask about the money or where it had come from, considering that a personal issue. He said the ministry is ready to cooperate with the NACC over the graft probe.

“As he was robbed, I need to console him. He’s in distress, and placing more hardship on him is inconsiderate. My motto is that we should not punish the fallen. Those who are in charge of the investigation should proceed with their job. Does it puzzle me that the permanent secretary has a lot of cash? I can’t answer that. I didn’t know him before I took this post. I never met him before. But working together, I find him an able man. I won’t comment on whether this [scandal] would affect my confidence in him,” the minister said.

The Transport Ministry is known as “the A grade” ministry given its considerable annual budget of around Bt100 billion for spending on transport infrastructure. 

Suphoth, 58, was appointed to the permanent secretary post on September 15, 2009. Earlier, he served as director-general of key departments including the Rural Roads Department and the Highways Department, and was chairman of the SRT and MRTA. He played a key role in approving many mega-projects, including the Purple Line, Red Line, and Blue Line mass-transit projects.