Fire Did Not Damage Evidence Against Suphoth: Bangkok Police

[webfact]

Fire did not damage evidence against Suphoth: police

Supachai Petchtewee

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Yesterday morning's fire at Bangkok's Wang Thong Lang police station has prompted Metropolitan Police deputy chief Pol MajGeneral Anuchai Lekbumrung to announce that the evidence related to former Transport permanentsecretary Suphoth Sublom's home robbery case was intact. Meanwhile, the Democrat Party asked if the fire, believed to have been caused by a short circuit, had damaged evidence related to the nowdefunct People's Power Party votebuying allegations.

An onduty officer spotted smoke coming from a storage area near detention cells on the ground floor at about 5.30am and quickly called the fire department, which took about 20 minutes to put out the fire. Of the seven detainees evacuated from the cells, two drunkdriving suspects, both 44, were rushed to Police General Hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.

Wang Thong Lang superintendent Pol Colonel Thawat Wongsanga said other detainees would be moved to other precincts nearby, adding that the fire did not destroy any key evidence in the police station's ongoing cases. He added that the fire did not have anything to do with Suphoth's robbery case, and that the Bt18 million confiscated cash and other evidence were still intact.

The blaze, believed to have been caused by a shortcircuited ventilation fan, covered an area of about 10 square metres and caused some damage.

However, Anuchai dismissed speculation the fire might be an attempt to destroy evidence related to Suphoth's case, adding that the room where the fire started had only broken chairs and other items that were no longer in use. He said the cause of the fire was under investigation and it would not be difficult to get to the bottom of it.

Meanwhile, Rames Rattanachaweng, a member of the Democrat Party's legal team, called on police to confirm if the evidence for ongoing cases, especially the one on votebuying allegations against People's Power Party and involving former party executive Yongyuth Tiyapairat, were still intact. He explained the Constitution Court had dissolved the party, but the criminal code procedure was still being investigated and hence some evidence might be kept at the station. He also urged Wang Thong Lang police to make the case's progress report public, adding that he would officially request national police chief Pol General Priewpan Damapong for an update on this case as well as the one against Yongyuth.

-- The Nation 2012-03-14

[noitom]

Ahhh...the old fire in the evidence room trick. Surprised to see that this was made public. probably happened hundreds of times before or at the very least, evidence "walked" with the proper greasing of the proper palm. This reminds us of the movie "Serpico", the true story of the NY City police whistle blower who exposed a few hundred corrupt cops in New York to termination, jail time, and fines. These same corrupt NY cops were also featured in the movie American Gangster, where scenes focused on the "removal of evidence."

Coincidentally, American Gangster also focused quite a few scenes on the escalation of the heroin trade in upper country Thailand and Bangkok. One could easily speculate that evidence disappearance in Thailand is quite rampant and rarely if ever examined by the press.

[americaninbangkok]

Why is it that any time a police official here "dismisses" anything, my "Spidey sense" tingles?

[OzMick]

Why does a room containing broken chairs and unused items require an operating ventilation fan?

[Reasonableman]

Why does a room containing broken chairs and unused items require an operating ventilation fan?

To help clear the smoke in case of a fire, of course...

[Pseudolus]

Why does a room containing broken chairs and unused items require an operating ventilation fan?

To stop damp thus making it more flammable?

[anterian]

Why does a room containing broken chairs and unused items require an operating ventilation fan?

The Thai electrician was unfamiliar with the concept of a switch.

[CHANGOVER]

Why does a room containing broken chairs and unused items require an operating ventilation fan?

The Thai electrician was unfamiliar with the concept of a switch.

I bet the BIB weren't unfamiliar with it though.