The curious tale of Suphoth: Was he bagman for a bent politician?
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The story is worthy of a Hollywood movie - Bt18 million in cash stolen from the home of Transport permanent secretary Suphoth Sublom - but the ending might be a disappointment, after all is said and done.
Although many suspect the cash was kickbacks, which came to light following a double-cross, the case is mired by political overtones, which could lead to a whitewash.
A brief recap of what happened might shed light on whether Suphoth is the designated “fall guy”.
The burglary took place in the evening of November 12 when Suphoth and family members were at the wedding party of his daughter at a five-star hotel on Wireless Road.
Based on the police report, some five to six men wearing masks and gloves broke into the home and tied up two maids before rushing to Suphoth’s bedroom to pry open the closet to get to the cash.
The third maid hid herself in the bathroom and called to alert Suphoth about the crime in progress. He in turn called a police commander asking for a discreet check about the break-in. By the time police arrived at the scene, the burglar suspects had fled in a pick-up truck.
According to their statements, the maids said the burglars said they meant no harm but wanted the cash taken by Suphoth to return to their “boss”. The break-in lasted less than 15 minutes.
Suphoth and his wife initially played down the incident as a misunderstanding. National police chief General Priewpan Damapong intervened by assigning his deputy General Panupong Singhara na Ayuthaya to oversee the case.
Within two days, Metropolitan Police Bureau commissioner Lt General Winai Thongsong confirmed Suphoth had given a statement to report Bt5 million in cash missing. The money was given to the bride’s parents, a custom known in Thailand as sin sot.
But police sources started leaking a scenario about a double cross in which Suphoth allegedly failed to distribute the kickbacks.
Within four days, police had rounded up two of 11 suspects. In a week police recovered Bt18 million in cash and took a total of eight suspects in custody. One of the suspects is the son of Suphoth’s former private secretary.
Winai estimated that the loot would amount to more than Bt100 million.
The burglar suspects curiously flaunted their ill-gotten gains, as if they wanted the police to catch them via a money trail.
And their statements became ready ammunition for Pheu Thai Party to attack their Bhum Jai Thai rivals.
Deputy Prime Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung has hinted that the kickbacks might be linked to the bidding for extension projects of the mass rapid transit network.
Bhum Jai Thai has rigorously denied any wrongdoing. And Suphoth said he did not have hundreds of millions baht lying around in his home. But no other witness has confirmed how much cash was stolen.
Despite the discovery of ill-gotten money, all parties still claim to be squeaky clean – even the burglar suspects have boasted about their great service in stealing money destined for kickbacks. This is truly amazing.
Suphoth will certainly have a lot of explaining to do about the cash. But graft busters will have a more daunting task to link the cash to any wrongdoing due to the lack of physical evidence and witnesses.
It is too early to write off Suphoth as the “fall guy” because his ties with Pheu Thai and Bhum Jai Thai politicians date back almost a decade. An out-of-turn move might see Suphoth dragging politicians down with him.
