AEC Freezes Thaksin's Assets, Proceeds From Shin Corp Sale

[sriracha john]

Thaksin lawyers may sue banks

Lawyers for the Shinawatra family have threatened to take legal action against commercial banks which have frozen a total of 65 billion baht of the family's assets if they do not free the assets because the Assets Scrutiny Committee (ASC) will soon be closed down. The ASC, however, promptly responded yesterday, saying the banks must continue to freeze the assets of former PM Thaksin's family, even though the agency will cease to exist at the end of this month. The ASC was responding to inquiries from Siam Commercial Bank and Siam City Bank, which are among the commercial banks which have kept the 65-billion-baht in assets frozen. The banks contacted the ASC on Thursday after lawyers representing Thaksin's younger sister Yingluck, his brother-in-law Bannapot Damapong and his children Panthongtae and Pinthongta told the banks to free the money

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.net/News/14Jun2008_news01.php

[jumnien]

Hey, someone's got to pay for those Grippen fighter planes on order!

[sriracha john]

Better that Thai taxpayer's money go to defending the Nation rather than a new goalie for Manchester City.

[Old Man River]

The water is almost ready to boil now...

AEC to Sue Bank for Releasing Thaksin’s Frozen Funds

The Assets Examination Committee (AEC) planned to file a complaint against a group of unnamed bank executives for approving the release of millions of baht in interest from the frozen bank accounts of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his family.

The principle amount of cash in the frozen accounts on which the interests were earned had arrived from the proceeds of the Shin Corp. share sale, which was traded between the Shinawatra family and Singapore’s Temesek Holding.

According to an AEC panel, headed by Viroj Laohapan, millions of baht in interest has been transferred to several saving accounts of the Shinawatra family, as the bank also allowed the funds to be withdrawn during the lead-up period to the December 23rd general election without notifying the committee in advance.

Viroj claimed that the bank executives had disobeyed the AEC’s order of freezing the accounts by approving the interest release without the committee’s consent and therefore, had committed a criminal offence.

- Thailand Outlook

If anyone thought being a banker is easy, think again. Normally, when banks receive orders to freeze assets, the first thing they do is take the order they received to their lawyers to see if it is a valid court order. If it is, they comply. The AEC is called the Assets Examination Committee and not the Assets Examination Court because it appears that they were not intended to be a court of valid jurisdiction. For all intents and purposes, its role is to gain evidence and then present a case against Thaksin et. al. to the courts with valid jurisdiction and hope for a conviction. So, if it is not a court with valid jurisdiction in itself, then the banks have really not received a valid court order freezing the assets they have frozen. I would expect that knowing they are thin ice here, they gave up the interest on the assets frozen. Now, the AEC is claiming that by giving up the interest on the assets frozen, the banks have committed a criminal offense. By making this comment, it suggests that the AEC thinks it really is a court with valid jurisdiction. Is it?

[hammered]

The water is almost ready to boil now...

AEC to Sue Bank for Releasing Thaksin’s Frozen Funds

The Assets Examination Committee (AEC) planned to file a complaint against a group of unnamed bank executives for approving the release of millions of baht in interest from the frozen bank accounts of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his family.

The principle amount of cash in the frozen accounts on which the interests were earned had arrived from the proceeds of the Shin Corp. share sale, which was traded between the Shinawatra family and Singapore’s Temesek Holding.

According to an AEC panel, headed by Viroj Laohapan, millions of baht in interest has been transferred to several saving accounts of the Shinawatra family, as the bank also allowed the funds to be withdrawn during the lead-up period to the December 23rd general election without notifying the committee in advance.

Viroj claimed that the bank executives had disobeyed the AEC’s order of freezing the accounts by approving the interest release without the committee’s consent and therefore, had committed a criminal offence.

- Thailand Outlook

If anyone thought being a banker is easy, think again. Normally, when banks receive orders to freeze assets, the first thing they do is take the order they received to their lawyers to see if it is a valid court order. If it is, they comply. The AEC is called the Assets Examination Committee and not the Assets Examination Court because it appears that they were not intended to be a court of valid jurisdiction. For all intents and purposes, its role is to gain evidence and then present a case against Thaksin et. al. to the courts with valid jurisdiction and hope for a conviction. So, if it is not a court with valid jurisdiction in itself, then the banks have really not received a valid court order freezing the assets they have frozen. I would expect that knowing they are thin ice here, they gave up the interest on the assets frozen. Now, the AEC is claiming that by giving up the interest on the assets frozen, the banks have committed a criminal offense. By making this comment, it suggests that the AEC thinks it really is a court with valid jurisdiction. Is it?

Whatever the legality and it does sound tenuous, and maybe a court will have to decide on it, the underlying problem will still remain. If the funds are relaesed it will be seen by many people as interference or a dodgy deal. If they are kept it will be seen by many people as unwarranted.

At the end of the day if these decisions arent made in a court (not the AEC) and a court that is not intereffered with then there probably wont be an outcome that many people can see as just.

It looks like the decison on what to do with the assets now/the status of the AEC will also have to be made in court.

[Old Man River]

The water is almost ready to boil now...

AEC to Sue Bank for Releasing Thaksin’s Frozen Funds

The Assets Examination Committee (AEC) planned to file a complaint against a group of unnamed bank executives for approving the release of millions of baht in interest from the frozen bank accounts of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his family.

The principle amount of cash in the frozen accounts on which the interests were earned had arrived from the proceeds of the Shin Corp. share sale, which was traded between the Shinawatra family and Singapore’s Temesek Holding.

According to an AEC panel, headed by Viroj Laohapan, millions of baht in interest has been transferred to several saving accounts of the Shinawatra family, as the bank also allowed the funds to be withdrawn during the lead-up period to the December 23rd general election without notifying the committee in advance.

Viroj claimed that the bank executives had disobeyed the AEC’s order of freezing the accounts by approving the interest release without the committee’s consent and therefore, had committed a criminal offence.

- Thailand Outlook

If anyone thought being a banker is easy, think again. Normally, when banks receive orders to freeze assets, the first thing they do is take the order they received to their lawyers to see if it is a valid court order. If it is, they comply. The AEC is called the Assets Examination Committee and not the Assets Examination Court because it appears that they were not intended to be a court of valid jurisdiction. For all intents and purposes, its role is to gain evidence and then present a case against Thaksin et. al. to the courts with valid jurisdiction and hope for a conviction. So, if it is not a court with valid jurisdiction in itself, then the banks have really not received a valid court order freezing the assets they have frozen. I would expect that knowing they are thin ice here, they gave up the interest on the assets frozen. Now, the AEC is claiming that by giving up the interest on the assets frozen, the banks have committed a criminal offense. By making this comment, it suggests that the AEC thinks it really is a court with valid jurisdiction. Is it?

Whatever the legality and it does sound tenuous, and maybe a court will have to decide on it, the underlying problem will still remain. If the funds are relaesed it will be seen by many people as interference or a dodgy deal. If they are kept it will be seen by many people as unwarranted.

At the end of the day if these decisions arent made in a court (not the AEC) and a court that is not intereffered with then there probably wont be an outcome that many people can see as just.

It looks like the decison on what to do with the assets now/the status of the AEC will also have to be made in court.

Which as it should be. HM the King repeatedly is telling justices to do the right thing. It doesn't matter how outsiders view it, just that the the legal system is impartial and judges make their decisions accordingly. An issue I can foresee is that once the AEC seizes to be legal, since it isn't a court, the survivability of its decisions will be in question. Upon expiry, Thaksin's assets should be his regardless of what eventually happens later in court (Thaksin's attorneys will argue they already should be). There is a due process to be followed and this means authorities shouldn't decide on guilt first and act accordingly until impartial legal decisions are made.

As normal, the only winners here will be the attorneys.

[sriracha john]

Attorney-General to Proceed with Cases against Thaksin

The Office of the Attorney General reveals that it will proceed with the legal case in which 76 billion baht's worth of the deposed prime minister's assets could be frozen, after the Assets Examination Committee's mandate terminates at the end of the month.

The Office of the Attorney General or the OAG reveals that the organization will proceed with the legal cases against deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra, following the request of the Assets Examination Committee.

The OAG is considering filing charges against the deposed prime minister and says 76 billion baht worth of Thaksin's assets could be frozen, depending on the court's verdict.

- Thailand Outlook

[marshbags]

Attorney-General to Proceed with Cases against Thaksin

The Office of the Attorney General reveals that it will proceed with the legal case in which 76 billion baht's worth of the deposed prime minister's assets could be frozen, after the Assets Examination Committee's mandate terminates at the end of the month.

The Office of the Attorney General or the OAG reveals that the organization will proceed with the legal cases against deposed premier Thaksin Shinawatra, following the request of the Assets Examination Committee.

The OAG is considering filing charges against the deposed prime minister and says 76 billion baht worth of Thaksin's assets could be frozen, depending on the court's verdict.

- Thailand Outlook

Without counting anyones chickens and in view of all the evidence they have at their disposal....

This is very good news for Thailand and it,s worthy citizens who deserve their day in court and hopefully justice will be done accordingly.

Thanks for the update John, it means a lot to me as i had a fear it was all going to be a repeat of times gone by.

What with the cake box outcome, just maybe " The times, They are a Changing " as the great Bob D. sang it.

marshbags

Edited June 27, 2008 by marshbags

[younghusband]

It doesn't matter how outsiders view it, just that the the legal system is impartial and judges make their decisions accordingly.

But in Thailand the whole system of law is inextricably tied up in politics.The legal system is not impartial, and if takes an outsider to point this out, so be it.Actually most insiders know the foregoing to be true: see Chang Noi's latest piece in The Nation for example.

[Plus]

Chang Noi was talking about the system in general, in this particular case the courts in question appear to be independent (though they follow the Royal advice, of course).

Still, it's not impossible for AEC to lose a couple of cases on technicalities, and I doubt anyone seriously believe Thaksin will lose all twelve of them anyway.

Giving back 76 bil so soon will look really bad, however, I hope it won't come to that.

[hammered]

It doesn't matter how outsiders view it, just that the the legal system is impartial and judges make their decisions accordingly.

But in Thailand the whole system of law is inextricably tied up in politics.The legal system is not impartial, and if takes an outsider to point this out, so be it.Actually most insiders know the foregoing to be true: see Chang Noi's latest piece in The Nation for example.

As the poltical cases get closer to being heard the politcal interference and pressure from politcal groups on judges will only get greater. There ahs been a subtle change from the law being applied to politcains to eventually always clear them even if it took an appeal or two to one where the law is being used to try and finish (corrupt?) polticians, and as Chang Noi pointed out Thailand does not have an independent and strong legal culture like exists in many countries. Think of Pakistan for a moment as an example of where there is astrong and independenet and trusted judiciary that whne interfered with causes massive politcal ramifications. Thailand has a way to go there.

[younghusband]

Chang Noi was talking about the system in general, in this particular case the courts in question appear to be independent (though they follow the Royal advice, of course).

Still, it's not impossible for AEC to lose a couple of cases on technicalities, and I doubt anyone seriously believe Thaksin will lose all twelve of them anyway.

Giving back 76 bil so soon will look really bad, however, I hope it won't come to that.

I asume you mean "listen" rather than "follow".HM's position is very clear on this point.Judges should of course listen to good advice from many sources, but in the last analysis they must make up their minds independently.It is rather a lonely profession in that way.

[sriracha john]

Can Thaksin get his money back?

Thaksin Shinawatra is trying to get his money back

The banks have frozen about Bt69 billion of the proceeds he made from the sale of Shin Corp to Temasek Holdings of Singapore. The Assets Examination Committee (AEC) ordered the freeze on Thaksin's money shortly after the military coup in 2006. The AEC was set up by the military to go after Thaksin's assets. One of the pretexts of the coup was that Thaksin had amassed his wealth through policy corruption to enrich his corporate empire.

Thaksin's lawyers have been trying to secure the release of the Bt69 billion held in different bank accounts. First, they argue that the AEC had no power to freeze the bank accounts of Thaksin and his family, or to build the corruption cases against Thaksin. The AEC's legitimacy was confirmed by a ruling of the Constitution Court. The banks, which hold Thaksin's money, are nervous. They are afraid that Thaksin might sue them if they don't allow him and his family to withdraw the money. In the meantime, the Bank of Thailand is keeping an eye closely on Thaksin's money.

Now a technical problem has emerged. The AEC's term came to end on June 30. Before going into oblivion, it transferred all the cases to the National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC). Thaksin now wants to withdraw the money that is currently frozen because he claims that the AEC no longer exists. Besides, the NCCC is not in the business of freezing money. What should the bankers do if Thaksin requests that his money be released to him when it suits him?

There is a legal vacuum here. But the NCCC appears to hold the view that the freeze should remain intact. This follows the Attorney-General's move to forward a major corruption case against Thaksin to the Supreme Court's Criminal Division of the Political Office Holders. Thaksin is accused of having committed policy corruption by amending laws to benefit the mobile phone, aviation and satellite businesses of the subsidiaries of Shin Corp at the expense of the state during his premiership between 2001 and 2006.

If Thaksin were to be found guilty, all the Bt69 billion of his sale of Shin Corp must be taken away by the state. Now we know why Thaksin is waging all kinds of behind-the-scenes wars to reclaim his wealth.

- The Nation / 250708

[sriracha john]

76 Billion Baht seizure suit likely next week

Prosecutors refer completed file to Attorney-General

Public prosecutors are likely to file a lawsuit next week against former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra to seize 76 Billion Baht of his family's assets.

Waiyawut Lotrakul, Deputy Attorney-General who chairs a working group on the corruption case prepared by the Assets Examination Committee, said yesterday that public prosecutors had submitted their completed lawsuit to Attorney-General Chaikasem Nitisiri for approval.

He expects the suit to be filed with the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Political Office Holders by next week.

Before completing its term at the end of June, the AEC accused Thaksin of being unusually wealthy and of abusing his authority to help his family's business.

It also ordered 69 Billion Baht in the Shinawatras' bank accounts to be frozen and sought a lawsuit to seize 76 Billion Baht in allegedly ill-gotten assets.

The National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC), which has taken over from the AEC the investigation of graft cases involving Thaksin and his Cabinet members, also insisted that the 76 Billion Baht be seized, according to Waiyawut.

NCCC spokesman Klanarong Chantik said yesterday that he expected public prosecutors to file a civil case for asset seizure next week. He said Thaksin would be accused of being unusually wealthy and abusing his authority while in office to benefit his associates and his family's business.

- The Nation

[sriracha john]

Attorney-General filing soon to seize Thaksin assets

BANGKOK, Aug 13 (TNA) -- Thailand's Office of the Attorney General (OAG) is confident that within one week it will be able to proceed with the record confiscation of 76 Billion Baht in assets earlier frozen from the holdings of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his family on charges of having abused his power to make undue personal and family gains.

Deputy Attorney-General Waiyawuth Lortrakul, who earlier headed a subcommittee under the now-disbanded Assets Examination Committee (AEC), said the proposed confiscation of the assets of Thaksin and his family valued at 76 Billion Baht will be forwarded next week by Attorney-General Chaikasem Nitisiri to Supreme Court judges dealing with criminal lawsuits involving persons with political status.

The former premier had recently failed to appear in court and were believed to be seeking political asylum in Britain.

The collected assets of Thaksin and his family were frozen in 16 bank accounts, including 18.1 Billion Baht at Bangkok Bank, 2.1 Billion Baht at the Bank of Ayudhya, 39.6 Billion Baht at Siam Commercial Bank, 1.4 Billion Baht at Thanachart Bank, 500 Million Baht at the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, 15.7 Billion Baht at the Government Savings Bank, 10 Billion Baht at the Islamic Bank of Thailand, and 2.7 Billion Baht at the Securities and Land Depository Centre.

They might become assets of the state in due course if the Supreme Court rule in favour of the confiscation of the foreclosed holdings of the former premier and his family.

[sriracha john]

Court will be asked to seize Thaksin's assets

Authorities have moved to seize the assets, revoke the diplomatic passports and seek the extradition of former PM Thaksin and his wife, Potjaman, who have skipped bail and fled to London. The Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) is expected to apply for a court order next week for the seizure of the Shinawatra family's assets, worth about 76 billion baht, mostly now frozen at local banks. Deputy Attorney-General Waiyawut Lortrakul said the prosecution had finished drafting the civil suit seeking to confiscate Thaksin's assets. He expected the case to be lodged with the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions next week. Mr Waiyawut said the decision to seize the assets was made at a meeting of prosecutors and the National Counter Corruption Commission.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/130808_News/13Aug2008_news01.php:

[Bryan in Isaan]

Sorry if this has already been covered. I have only read the last couple of pages of this thread, but just a minor point - Who gets the money if it is "seized", "frozen" or whatever. In reality, it will be in someone's possession or use.

[Old Man River]

Without counting anyones chickens and in view of all the evidence they have at their disposal....

Speaking of evidence at their disposal, with all the corruption that went on during the construction of the new airport, isn't it surprising that the prosecutors never followed the money? Shoddy materials (crumbling runways), accusations of payoffs etc. and I can't think of one case where the charges are that Mr. XYZ took bribes or construction company XYZ received payoffs under the table or were allowed to use shoddy materials. Instead, it is always coming down to legal interpretations of different aspects of the law.

To an extent, it almost sounds like the prosecutors didn't want to cast their nets too wide for fear of who might fall in.

[sriracha john]

A case involving the airport is still in the process of investigation by the NCCC. As with all these cases, it takes time.

[Jai Dee]

Thai former PM Thaksin's assets to be seized

Thailand's Office of the Attorney General (OAG) is confident that within one week it will be able to proceed with the record confiscation of 76 billion baht (about 19 billion U.S. dollars) in assets earlier frozen from the holdings of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his family on charges of having abused his power to make undue personal and family gains, according to the Thai News Agency.

Deputy Attorney General Waiyawuth Lortrakul, who earlier headed a subcommittee under the now-disbanded Assets Examination Committee (AEC), said the proposed confiscation of the assets of Thaksin and his family valued at 76 billion baht (about 19 billion U.S. dollars) will be forwarded next week by Attorney General Chaikasem Nitisiri to Supreme Court judges dealing with criminal lawsuits involving persons with political status.

The former premier had recently failed to appear in court and were believed to be seeking political asylum in Britain.

The collected assets of Thaksin and his family were frozen in 16 bank accounts, including accounts of the Bangkok Bank, the Bankof Ayudhya, the Siam Commercial Bank, the Thanachart Bank, the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, the Government Savings Bank, the Islamic Bank of Thailand and the Securities and Land Depository Center.

They might become assets of the state in due course if the Supreme Court rule in favor of the confiscation of the foreclosed holdings of the former premier and his family, the official news agency said.

Source: Xinhua - 13 August 2008

[sriracha john]

76 billion baht (about 19 billion U.S. dollars)

Source: Xinhua - 13 August 2008

Next time I'm exchanging baht for dollars, I'm going to China to do it....

[Bill97]

Attorney-General filing soon to seize Thaksin assets

BANGKOK, Aug 13 (TNA) --

The collected assets of Thaksin and his family were frozen in 16 bank accounts, including 18.1 Billion Baht at Bangkok Bank, 2.1 Billion Baht at the Bank of Ayudhya, 39.6 Billion Baht at Siam Commercial Bank, 1.4 Billion Baht at Thanachart Bank, 500 Million Baht at the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, 15.7 Billion Baht at the Government Savings Bank, 10 Billion Baht at the Islamic Bank of Thailand, and 2.7 Billion Baht at the Securities and Land Depository Centre.

Did they get his land holdings or only the bank accounts?

[Old Man River]

A case involving the airport is still in the process of investigation by the NCCC. As with all these cases, it takes time.

"A case." Given the amount of corruption at this new airport, "a case" is not acceptable. That case is the CTX Scanner case, which has been refused once and thankfully, the NCCC stepped in and said they would look at it further. How about all the other cases? Originally, Jaruvan estimated corruption at this airport to be billions upon billions of THB in corruption. What happened to these cases?

[sriracha john]

Actually I wasn't referring to the CTX scanners, but the case involving the Airport Rail Link corruption. I've looked a bit and found there's also a case involving the electrification and electrical fibre-optic tunnel construction at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

[Old Man River]

Actually I wasn't referring to the CTX scanners, but the case involving the Airport Rail Link corruption. I've looked a bit and found there's also a case involving the electrification and electrical fibre-optic tunnel construction at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Thanks for this. I hope this all goes forward since cases like the Ratchada one (regardless of the eventual decision) don't hold up in closer inspection. Since you are following these cases, why didn't the AEC follow the money? At no time have they shown any case where Thaksin or his cohorts received bribes. So far, it is all questions of interpretations on points of law which maybe enough for the courts to seize his assets, but won't be enough for the people of the northeast to start questioning whether they made a mistake or not. At the end of the day, this is what is important. Otherwise, this can all happen again (quickly).

[sriracha john]

Some of the upcoming cases involve tremendous amount of evidence, eg. the lottery case had 40 huge boxes of evidence submitted. What's contained in all of that hasn't been released yet, so perhaps much of this money trailing has yet to be revealed to the public. The judicial process can be agonizingly slow at times throughout the world and much to many people's chagrin, calls for patience.

[sriracha john]

Just one trial

Only one of the criminal cases against former PM Thaksin Shinawatra will proceed in his absence while he is a fugitive abroad, a source at the Supreme Court said Wednesday. Under the rules governing the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions, defendants must be present at the first hearing, where they must formally acknowledge the proceedings after hearing the court read out the charges. Of the cases against Thaksin, who on Monday skipped bail and announced he was staying in London, only the Ratchadaphisek land case will proceed, and a verdict be issued, if Thaksin does not return to Thailand, the source said. "So if he does not appear in court at the first hearing after the court accepts a lawsuit against him, that case would be suspended. The court may also issue a warrant for his arrest," said the source. Deputy Attorney-General Waiyawut Lortrakul said yesterday a planned civil lawsuit to seek the confiscation of 76 billion baht of Thaksin's assets will not be halted. The case can proceed in their absence and they can appoint lawyers to attend the trial on their behalf. Mr Waiyawut said the lawsuit will be filed as soon as it is approved by Attorney-General Chaikasem Nitisiri. The House Committee on Finance, Banking and Financial Institutes has been informed the Attorney-General is considering seizing Thaksin's assets. The only way for Thaksin to have the assets returned is to attend court.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/tops...s.php?id=129594

Edited August 14, 2008 by sriracha john

[sriracha john]

Deputy Attorney-General Waiyawut Lortrakul said yesterday a planned civil lawsuit to seek the confiscation of 76 billion baht of Thaksin's assets will not be halted. The case can proceed in their absence and they can appoint lawyers to attend the trial on their behalf. Mr Waiyawut said the lawsuit will be filed as soon as it is approved by Attorney-General Chaikasem Nitisiri. The House Committee on Finance, Banking and Financial Institutes has been informed the Attorney-General is considering seizing Thaksin's assets. The only way for Thaksin to have the assets returned is to attend court.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories/tops...s.php?id=129594

and "not halted" it was...

Attorney-General approves suit to seize assets

Action targets 76 Billion Baht of Thaksin's family wealth

Attorney-General Chaikasem Nitisiri has approved a civil lawsuit seeking seizure of the Shinawatra family assets, totalling about 76 Billion Baht, a source at the Office of the Attorney-General said yesterday. The case was now expected to be submitted to the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions on Monday, the source said. Chaikasem had, however, instructed that the prosecutors revise the wording of the indictment. The move to seize the family's assets was agreed on at a meeting of prosecutors and the NCCC, which took over the case from the ASC when its term ended. The 76 Billion is the estimated total return from the Shin Corp sale.

Continued here:

http://www.bangkokpost.net/220808_News/22Aug2008_news11.php

Edited August 22, 2008 by sriracha john

[sriracha john]

Panthongtae Shinawatra

Pinthongta Shinawatra

Deputy PM deny rumors that he unfroze Shinawatra family assets

The Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Finance Surapong Suebwonglee, affirmed that he did not instruct the Siam Commercial Bank to unfreeze assets belonging to the Shinawatra family.

The Deputy Prime Minister denied rumors that he instructed the Revenue Department, Region 1, to coordinate with the Siam Commerical Bank in returning a portion of assets seized from Panthongtae and Pinthongta Shinawatra, valued at over 12 Billion Baht. The assets were part of the 76 Billion Baht in Shinawatra family assets frozen by the Asset Examination Committee.

Surapong said that the rumors were completely baseless, and revealed that he has absolutely no authority to order the Shinawatra assets frozen or unfrozen. The Minister of Finance adds that the Bank of Thailand, which is the agency tasked with overseeing other commercial banks in Thailand, also had no authority over Shinawatra family assets.

- ThaiNews / today

Edited August 22, 2008 by sriracha john

[Tony Clifton]

Means something IS going on.