Samut Prakan jail chief, four guards transferred after inmate’s death

By The Nation

 

Krit Wongwet, commander of the Samut Prakan Central Prison

 

The Samut Prakran prison chief and four officials have been transferred following a death an inmate who appeared to have been beaten.

 

Pol Colonel Narat Savettanan, director-general of the Corrections Department, said Krit Wongwet, the commander of the Samut Prakan Central Prison, and four officials have been transferred pending a fact-finding and disciplinary probes.

 

The inmate died on Wednesday after he and 17 other inmates were allegedly beaten by prison guards after some drugs were found in the prison.

 

The Police Hospital’s Forensic Medicine Institute conducted an autopsy and reported that the man died of suffocation due to choking on food, but noted that his body had a lot of bruise marks. His wrists also had red marks, indicating that they had been tied.

Narat said he had seen photos of injury traces on the body. He had also received a report from the prison chief stating that the dead inmate was allegedly involved in drug smuggling and that the penalty might have got out of control.

 

“I am sorry for what happened. I hereby affirm that the Corrections Department has no policy to torture inmates,” Narat said.

 

He said he has demanded a written explanation from the Samut Prakan prison chief.

 

“I saw that this was a severe disciplinary offence. I hereby affirm that the Corrections Department attaches importance to the human rights of inmates. We don’t support beatings that lead to death, and we don’t overlook such incidents,” Narat added.

 

Narat also attended the funeral service of the dead innate at Wat Thung Khruru in Bangkok’s Thung Khuru district at 7.30pm on Friday. He gave a wreath and some money to the wife of the inmate.

 

After the funeral service, Narat told reporters that the prison chief had been moved to an inactive post within the department. Two of the officials were moved to Thon Buri prison and two others to Chachoengsao prison.

 

Narat said the department would set up a fact-finding panel to investigate the five officials. If there were evidence that they had committed disciplinary offences, a severe disciplinary probe would be conducted. He said the severest penalty available was dismissal from service.

 

Narat said the department would cooperate with police conducting an investigation into alleged extrajudicial killing.

 

Narat said he has learned that the four officials were normally hard working and had enforced the law strictly.

 

He said prison officials should have alerted police to take legal action when drugs were detected in the prison. Prison officials could also use administrative measures to punish inmates, such as reducing their status and prohibiting visits by relatives, instead of using force against them.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30343658

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-04-21

The harshest punishment for the torture and murder of a bound person is dismissal from your job.

 

Abominable 

16 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

He said the severest penalty available was dismissal from service.

I would assume that if they did what they are accused of (and looking at the horrendous bruising on the body, it looks quite likely), they should then face criminal charges which would carry a far more severe penalty ?

13 hours ago, rooster59 said:

he has demanded a written explanation from the Samut Prakan prison chief

I quite doubt that this troglodyte can write..., maybe he can do a cave painting instead.

13 hours ago, z42 said:

The harshest punishment for the torture and murder of a bound person is dismissal from your job.

 

Abominable 

Manslaughter, murder, torture come to mind.. But TIT, dismissal only.. What a joke.. Accountability!! 

13 hours ago, rooster59 said:

We don’t support beatings that lead to death, and we don’t overlook such incidents,” Narat added.

But beatings that don't lead to death are o.k?

41 minutes ago, owenm said:

Manslaughter, murder, torture come to mind.. But TIT, dismissal only.. What a joke.. Accountability!! 

It says in the story that they will cooperate with the police enquiry into extrajudicial killing ie murder. The prison service penalty is only up to dismissal, the criminal penalty from the court  can be up to the death penalty.

Actually, 18 people beating themselves and throwing themselves against the cell walls is quite common I would offer in their defence.

17 hours ago, z42 said:

The harshest punishment for the torture and murder of a bound person is dismissal from your job.

 

Abominable 

and I'm gonna' doubt that will even occur 

8 hours ago, owenm said:

Manslaughter, murder, torture come to mind.. But TIT, dismissal only.. What a joke.. Accountability!! 

Transferred, dismissal would be far too harsh.

It's really sad that this boys parents pay the salary of their sons murderers through taxes. 

Beatings by thai government officials must surely be the worst in the world. Deaths in custody and or in the military must be an extremely painful way to die. Another young thai life taken by an official baton. 

On 4/22/2018 at 7:13 PM, fullcave said:

Transferred, dismissal would be far too harsh.

"Transferred" only till the media dies down. 

"Good" men are just too difficult to find these days

to be letting them go needlessly. Who knows what

they'll end up with next. Better to stick with the

tried and true then to be taking any chances 

On 4/22/2018 at 11:20 AM, 300sd said:

But beatings that don't lead to death are o.k?

 

Yep, that's the way I read that comment.

 

Obviously, the boys went a bit too far on this most recent "disciplinary" session.

 

Too bad they can't be treated to a round of their own style discipline.

 

Funny when you read about people who deal drugs. Everyone will say they deserve the death penalty. 

When one of them get it everyone seems to change their minds.