Governor denies involvement in Mae Hong Son teenage prostitution scandal
Uttaradit governor Pipat Ekpapan has claimed on his personal Facebook page that he had nothing to do with a teenage prostitution scandal in Mae Hong Son.
He also posted pictures and information about his social development projects in Mae Hong Son, including a scholarships for underprivileged youths.
“I maintain my innocence that I had never done something like that. On the day I picked up the Mae Hong Son governor post on October 1, 2015, I stayed overnight at the sacred Wat Phrathat Doi Kongmu for auspicion to my life and my family.
“I also 100 per cent believe that current Mae Hong Son governor Suebsak Iamwichan did not do this.
“Soon the truth will prevail, as a probe by the Interior Ministry as well as the investigations by the Anti-Human Trafficking Division and the Provincial Police Region 5, are ongoing.
“If anyone did wrong, they won’t escape punishment,” he said.
He said that people who were unfairly judged by society, despite unclear facts in media reports, suffer damage to their names so the public should use their discretion to screen news.
His online post, which received 950 likes and 91 shares as of Friday afternoon, was in response to recent news reports in which a mother has alleged that her teenage daughter and several other girls had been blackmailed and coerced into the sex trade in Mae Hong Son province.
She said some policemen and state officials, including a provincial governor, allegedly bought sexual services from the minors.
