Criminal Court grants temporary release to six defendants in State Audit building collapse case, bans travel abroad

The Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road has approved temporary release for six defendants in the State Audit Office (SAO) building collapse case, setting bail at 1.5 million baht each and imposing conditions including an electronic monitoring bracelet and a prohibition on leaving the country without court permission.

The hearing took place on November 22, 2025, where the court considered bail requests from:

• Pimon Charoenying (Defendant No. 3)
• Teera Wattanatapsap (No. 5)
• Suphon Akkarareesuk (No. 6)
• Chainarong Siangphairphan (No. 7)
• Apichat Raksa (No. 8)
• Wisan Chulaphallop (No. 23)

All six are engineers from Meinhardt and related companies involved in the building’s design. The group does not include Premchai.

Prosecutors oppose bail, citing risk of interference

Prosecutor Supaporn Nipawanich and her team opposed temporary release, arguing:

• No compensation has yet been provided to victims or the state
• The case is highly sensitive with multiple deaths
• The defendants, as engineers, personally know several key witnesses and could potentially influence testimony
• The prosecution preferred to first examine witness evidence to ensure fairness
• They requested the court to reject bail.

Court finds risk level low and circumstances changed

The court considered the oral testimonies and a risk-assessment report, which rated the chance of flight or other harm as low.

The court noted:

Although the prosecution alleges 67 counts in total, these six defendants are charged with only one count under section 2.1 of the indictment

• They are professional engineers with permanent residences
• They have not attempted to flee
• They have been cooperative, providing documents and meeting investigators as summoned
• Police have already gathered and handed over case files; evidence-tampering concerns were not supported by facts
• There is no indication that the defendants hold influence capable of intimidating witnesses

The court also acknowledged that although both the Criminal Court and Court of Appeal had previously denied bail, the circumstances have now changed, warranting approval of temporary release.

Bail conditions

The court granted release during trial with conditions:

• Bail: 1.5 million baht each
• Electronic monitoring (EM) required
• Travel ban: No leaving the Kingdom without court approval

The case concerns the collapse of the State Audit Office building, which caused multiple fatalities and remains one of the most serious engineering-failure cases before the Thai courts.