Mae Hong Son underage prostitution scandal: TAO head turns himself in
The head of a tambon administrative organisation (TAO) in Nonthaburi province turned himself in to a court on Monday to face a malfeasance charge related to a trip to Mae Hong Son province during which a member of his government allegedly bought sex from an underage prostitutes.
Wasu Phan-ngern, president of the Ban Mai Tambon Administrative Organisation (TAO) in Bang Yai district, turned up at the Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases at about 8am.
On Saturday, the court approved an arrest warrant for him for failing to report to police.
The charge against Wasu is linked to the Mae Hong Son sex scandal, which has seen many police and state officials accused of buying sex from underage prostitutes.
Investigators alleged budget documents were falsified to indicate the Ban Mai to Mae Hong Son trip last September was a study trip and local politicians in the group bought sex from teenage prostitutes.
One of the Ban Mai TAO members allegedly told a young prostitute he was the Mae Hong Son governor.
That led to the province’s top official being suspended and transferred out of the northern city while a disciplinary investigation is conducted.
Wasu left the court at about 8.40am and said everything would proceed according to legal procedures.
Bang Mae Nang Police Station chief Colonel Chotewat Luangwilai said Wasu should have surrendered to the station instead of going to court.
