Verdict delayed in Chuwit beer-bar case
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OUTSPOKEN politician Chuwit Kamolvisit yesterday got a temporary reprieve from the Supreme Court after the court agreed to postpone the reading of its final verdict in his beer-bar demolition case to January 28.
Until yesterday, the former massage-parlour tycoon had always denied ordering the violent demolition of the beer bars in 2003.
However, he suddenly backtracked on his previous statement yesterday. He sent his confession and a plea for lighter punishment to the Southern Bangkok Criminal Court, which alerted the highest court by fax.
The Supreme Court had been scheduled to announce the final ruling on the much-publicised beer-bar demolition yesterday. But after receiving the fax, it announced that the verdict reading would take place on January 28 instead. In his petition to the court, Chuwit pleaded for mercy and asked that the court suspend his jail term.
The Criminal Court initially gave Chuwit the benefit of the doubt and acquitted him after he insisted he did not play a role in the demolition. However, the Appeals Court later found him guilty and sentenced him to five years in jail. Chuwit then appealed against the conviction and the jail term, bringing his case to the highest court.
In the past decade, he has transformed himself into a colourful politician. He is the founder and leader of the Rak Prathet Thai Party and has been quite popular because of his efforts to expose a number of corruption scandals.
His Facebook page, under the name “Chuwit I’m No 5”, has more than 900,000 fans.
Chuwit yesterday said he decided to confess to the beer-bar demolition because he felt it was best to be sincere.
“I committed the offence at the time because I was a businessman. After I did it, I felt uncomfortable. It’s time to release myself from that discomfort by speaking the truth,” he said.
He said he admitted that he did the wrong thing but pleaded for understanding as he was under pressure and ignorant of the facts.
“I bought a plot of land for Bt500 million because the bank said it could evict the existing occupants from the plot. So when the occupants refused to leave, I felt pressured to do something,” Chuwit said.
He said he had been thinking hard over the last two days about whether to make a confession.
“Finally, I told myself I should confess. By confessing to the crime, I feel relieved. It’s like removing a mountain off my chest,” he said.
Chuwit said he also engaged in merit-making and asked blessings from Buddha images before he went to the court yesterday.
“Of course, I don’t want to go to jail,” he said.
It was the second time that the Supreme Court had postponed the reading of its verdict in the beer-bar demolition case.
The first postponement was in August this year because several defendants failed to show up. Chuwit has always showed up for the court sessions.
Other prominent defendants in this case included Lt-Colonel Himalai Priewphan and Major Thanyathep Thammathorn. Thanyathep failed to show up for the verdict-reading session for the second time yesterday. The court hence issued a warrant for his arrest and fined his guarantor.
Meanwhile, Jessada A-nujaree, of the Lawyers Council of Thailand, said he has seen defendants make confessions after their cases had already gone to the Appeal Court, but it hasn’t happened very often.
In Chuwit’s case, Jessada said, the Supreme Court may or may not reduce the punishment.
“No penalty reduction may be granted if the court thinks the defendant confessed in the presence of solid evidence. The penalty may be reduced if the court feels the confession is useful,” he said.
