Arrests planned over share transfers

POLICE ARE getting ready to seek arrest warrants for several suspects who played a role in the “suspicious” transfer of late tycoon Chuwong Saetang’s shares worth almost Bt300 million to two women.
However, police have not yet concluded whether these suspects played a role in Chuwong’s death.
Chuwong died on June 27 in what Pol Lt-Colonel Banyin Tangpakorn, a former deputy commerce minister and ex-MP, claims was a car accident. Banyin was reportedly driving Chuwong home when his Lexus car hit a roadside tree.
The victim’s family, however, has been suspecting foul play in light of the fact that Banyin survived the reported car crash unscathed and a huge number of Chuwong’s shares were transferred to two women just days before his death.
The Metropolitan Police Bureau is looking into Chuwong’s death to determine if he really died in a car accident.
The Crime Suppression Division and the Central Investigation Bureau have been looking into the suspicious share transfers, while the two women involved claim they had special ties with the late tycoon.
The woman who got more than Bt220 million of the shares has even told police that she is pregnant with Chuwong’s child.
The shares have been frozen pending full investigation.
“We have found evidence that some suspects have used tricky or illegitimate means to carry out the share transfers,” national police chief Pol General Somyot Poompanmuang said yesterday, adding that police would ask the court to approve the arrest warrants in a few days.
Though he refused to identify any of the suspects and also declined to say if the two recipients will face arrest, he did complain that the brokerage firm involved in the transfers was not being cooperative.
“It’s very clear that it is not providing good cooperation. We will enforce laws to force it to submit the evidence needed to complete the investigation,” he said.
The national police chief was speaking after attending a meeting with police officers who are in charge of Chuwong’s case.
Somyot said the meeting had not yet concluded as to whether the suspicious share transfers led to Chuwong’s death.
“I understand public sentiment, but we have to proceed based on evidence,” he added.
He pointed out that additional evidence from Chuwong’s body could no longer be available as it has already been cremated, adding that all investigators can do at this point is consult medical experts on the autopsy results.
“By the way, we are doing our best. We will try to clear any doubts before concluding whether Chuwong died of an accident or not,” Somyot said.
Meanwhile, Banyin is planning to lodge a complaint today against a senior judge with the Office of the Judicial Commission. “I believe this judge has provided legal counselling services in the case of Chuwong’s death,” Banyin said yesterday. “So, I think his ethics should be subject to scrutiny”.