110 Thai immigration police officers charged in visa scandal

[webfact]

 

More than 100 immigration police officers, including three generals, have been found to have issued visas illegally to foreign visitors, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, the deputy national police chief, said today (Monday).

 

All 110 of them have been charged with malfeasance in office and taking bribes, he said, adding that he expects the case to be sent to the public prosecutors this week.

 

The probe into visa scandal, in which immigration police officers and several local administration officials are implicated, is an extension of an investigation into the conduct of a handful of immigration police officers, who were allegedly involved in issuing visas for Chinese businessman Chaiyanat Kornchayanant and other Chinese businessmen allegedly involved in “grey” businesses in Thailand.

 

Chaiyanat and dozens of his associates are currently being held on remand on multiple charges, including narcotics trafficking, money laundering and involvement in organised transnational crime.

 

Full story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/110-thai-immigration-police-officers-charged-in-visa-scandal/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2023-02-07

 

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[d4dang]

so they join the RTP later when the heat is off or work at illegal casinos?

[tjb30i]

Well it looks like the only way out of this situation for the immigration officers is to pay off the prosecutors lol

[soi3eddie]

Should those here who rely upon visa agents for their extended stays be worried? Could this trickle down to lower level immigration officers too?

 

[Andycoops]

A mere tip of the iceberg.

[harleyclarkey]

110? 

Was this from the one office?? 

[Tropposurfer]

Yo 'Big Joke' now go and clean out and prosecute the I.O.'s extorting folks on ED and other visas's.

[Mac Mickmanus]

Is this going to affect being able to get a retirement visa extension  without 800 000 Baht in the bank ?

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

1 hour ago, tjb30i said:

Well it looks like the only way out of this situation for the immigration officers is to pay off the prosecutors lol

That's exactly what this is. The whole thing's about "Hey, looks like you're really cleaning up over there. Where's my cut?"

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

All 110 of them have been charged with malfeasance in office and taking bribes, he said, adding that he expects the case to be sent to the public prosecutors this week.

So will they all be charged and sentenced?

Will they face any jail time?

Or will they just be transferred to an inactive post for a while?

[ChrisY1]

3 hours ago, d4dang said:

so they join the RTP later when the heat is off or work at illegal casinos?

Well...they are the RTP.

[Mickeymaus]

I guess they will all be transferred to the Ministry of Inactive Posts, which is getting bigger every day.

[ignore it]

It's been leaked that they let a couple off the hook to avoid having an uncomfortable number in the headlines. 

[jeffriesbkk]

Why isnt Big Joke behind bars?  He was deemed to be 'unusually rich' and fled to USA some years back. Thats when he was immigration supremo.

 

[BananaStrong]

Only YOU know if you are truly following all the rules, or using an agent to skirt the laws.

 

your days might be numbered……why?   There’s money to be made.   20,000 fee or whatever might go to 100,000…….

 

It makes zero difference to me, so why not wish all the best.  I just think this is a clear red flag.  Warning.   

[Orinoco]

2 minutes ago, Red Forever said:

I bet they get together and go to the beach at night kicking the homeless and telling them "get a job!"

It's get a hair cut, get a job. 

[khunjeff]

Where are the names of the charged officers, and the photos of them sitting with their heads bowed and Big Joke pointing at them? If these were foreigners arrested for littering, there would have been a massive press conference with huge vinyl boards detailing their crimes and 15 police heroes standing at attention behind them. 

[rwill]

2 hours ago, hotchilli said:

So will they all be charged and sentenced?

Will they face any jail time?

Or will they just be transferred to an inactive post for a while?

More likely just sent to a different immigration office.  Hopefully not mine.

[TheFishman1]

The bribes in the payoff happening every single immigration office saying is 100 150 people that’s a very low figure they collected at the end of the month. They all divided in life goes on TIT

[Henryford]

110 WOW, that must be the whole immigration department.

[bamnutsak]

I'm inferring that some/many of these individuals served under Surachate when he headed up the Immigration Division?

 

And that they only broke bad when he left?

 

 

[Caldera]

My biggest concern is what the immigration police will come up with next, now that they've lost all this extra income. It will need to be replaced, one way or another. 

[bamnutsak]

12 minutes ago, Caldera said:

My biggest concern is what the immigration police will come up with next, now that they've lost all this extra income.

Tip Jars 2.0?

 

 

[n00dle]

2 hours ago, jeffriesbkk said:

Why isnt Big Joke behind bars?  He was deemed to be 'unusually rich' and fled to USA some years back. Thats when he was immigration supremo.

 

Was this before or after the assassination attempt?

[youngster30uk]

2 hours ago, jeffriesbkk said:

Why isnt Big Joke behind bars?  He was deemed to be 'unusually rich' and fled to USA some years back. Thats when he was immigration supremo.

 

Where did you get that info? I thought he was moved to an inactive post for reasons unknown (thought to have stood on the wrong toes). Didnt hear anything about him running to the US due to being 'unusually rich!

 

[sambum]

I hope that Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn has a top notch security team looking out for his well being!

 

He seems to be stepping on an awful lot of toes!

Edited February 7, 2023 by metisdead
Oversize bold font reset to normal.

[Snig27]

3 hours ago, Neeranam said:

Hopefully this open corruption will end. 

Those who bribed the officers should be blacklisted. 

It will only end when the system is cleansed to the top (and I mean above the police). Thus it will never happen. A land where convicted drug dealers are allowed to sit in the cabinet, a cabinet that exists because its head committed treason to get there, where the highest court in the land is filled with compliant political appointees is not a land where the police are required to be clean. 

[Sydebolle]

The proverbial TIP OF THE ICEBERG ........ but you have to start somewhere; lets see what happens next - if at all! 

[NoshowJones]

15 minutes ago, Doctor Tom said:

Maybe not the same guy then. 

Maybe.

[Orinoco]

2 hours ago, khunjeff said:

Where are the names of the charged officers, and the photos of them sitting with their heads bowed and Big Joke pointing at them? If these were foreigners arrested for littering, there would have been a massive press conference with huge vinyl boards detailing their crimes and 15 police heroes standing at attention behind them. 

Yes, very true,  the last week a foreigner was on a 25 day overstay. whoop, whoop,

5 goons standing behind him, like he was some kind of international drugs dealer.

Amazing immigration.