Defendants say evidence does not match tree in rosewood case

TUESDAY, July 19, 2016

EVIDENCE IN the prosecution of charges of illegal possession of rosewood does not match the stump of the tree that had been felled, defendants have claimed, adding that they would file a compliant with the prime minister and judicial system alleging the c

The defendants are three siblings from Kalasin province – Pradit Phunamun, Thanom Phunamun and Thongpud Chaengnean.

In line with their claims about the rosewood, the Tambon Klongkham Justice Centre committee and Army officers inspected the Ban Ton Village cemetery in Yang Talat district yesterday where the siblings allegedly collected the rosewood.

It appeared that the tree stump is much smaller than the pieces of wood that police have presented as evidence.

“It is clear that there is something wrong and I can’t accept the way Yang Talat police are working on this case,” said Wittaya Buntalok, adviser to the Tambon Klongkham Justice Centre. “

We are preparing documents and evidence to file with the prime minister, the judicial system and the Kalasin governor in order to seek justice for the three siblings.

“We are asking for the case to be reviewed and that transparency is ensured in the official procedure in line with the government’s goal to return happiness to the people,” he said.

Journalists at the site agreed the wood at the site where defendants had harvested wood appeared smaller than the logs being presented as evidence.

The evidence stored at the Dongmun Forest Protection Unit consists of 10 pieces of rosewood 0.25 cubic metres in size and a 0.2-cubic-metre pile of firewood.

Thanom said the wood used as evidence is not what the siblings had collected from the cemetery and he had no idea why different wood is being presented as evidence.

His sister Pradit added that they had only collected small pieces of wood to use as firewood and that they had previously sought permission from the temple and the village chief.