Conviction upheld over MP's smuggled vehicle

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Court of Appeals yesterday upheld the lower court's conviction and sentencing of former Thai Rak Thai Party MP Wichai Chaijitwanichkul over buying a smuggled vehicle and falsifying official documents.

Wichai faces a one-year suspended jail term and a fine of Bt6.5 million. However, because Wichai eventually surrendered to police, the Court of Appeals ruled against the lower court's decision to grant police 20 per cent of the fine as a reward.

Public prosecutors accused Wichai of buying a Mitsubishi Pajero sport-utility vehicle worth Bt1.6 million, including an import tariff of Bt723,289. Crime suppression police seized the SUV along with a pair of counterfeit licence plates at Wichai's home in Udon Thani in March 1998.

The lawsuit filed against him by police said Wichai bought the vehicle, which had been smuggled into the country without import tariffs being paid. Police said Wichai knew that the red Bangkok licence plates, number Kor 7999, were falsified and that buying a smuggled car would cause damage to the Land Transport Department.

In 2010, the Criminal Court sentenced him to one year in prison and a fine of Bt6.5 million for buying a smuggled car plus Bt2,000 for using faked official documents. The jail term was commuted to a one-year suspended sentence on the grounds that Wichai was a first-time offender.

Wichai filed an appeal, saying that he was a victim of political harassment. He testified that a campaign canvasser needed money for kidney dialysis and asked him to buy the vehicle, but Wichai did not because there were no documents to prove taxes had been paid. The canvasser put a sticker with Wichai's name on the windshield anyway and left it at his home the night before the police seized it.

The Court of Appeals ruled that Wichai's move to at first oppose the police's attempt to seize the vehicle was suspicious. The police also found that the SUV's registration number had been removed. They also found that a complaint of a stolen car of the same brand and colour was lodged in Malaysia.

Testifying in court for the prosecution, Wichai's maid said he had owned the vehicle for three to four months before it was seized and that one time he had his driver use the vehicle to drop him at the Udon Thani airport. Another prosecution witness also testified that he saw Wichai using the vehicle for about three months.

The court ruled that Wichai, who had served as deputy commerce minister, must have known that the price of the vehicle plus taxes and tariffs would amount to around Bt3 million. However, he paid less than half that and he also did not know who was the true owner of the vehicle.

-- The Nation 2012-10-31

A corrupt public servant should have to do the maximum. He lied to cover his crime and still gets a reduced sentence. Horse hockey.

So he's making a complaint against the police and yet this:

"... the Court of Appeals ruled against the lower court's decision to grant police 20 per cent of the fine as a reward."

Who were the beneficiaries to receive the 20%? Or was this just going to the B.i.B. consolidated revenue bribes account?

It takes 14 years to sort out a car tax fraud?

He seems happy to have avoided any jail time.

Former Thai Rak Thai Party MP banned for electoral fraud and convicted tax fraudster, Wichai Chaijitwanichkul

Thai Rath (in Thai) October 31, 2012

http://www.thairath....t/region/302381

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Edited October 31, 201213 yr by Buchholz

Just what I was thinking, 14 years to reach a conclusion to a dodgy car deal ??

Just what I was thinking, 14 years to reach a conclusion to a dodgy car deal ??

The Thai Justice system could be run over by a glacier.

I Hate to say this and I will probably get suspened for using this word, but the Thai courts are real Pussies when it comes to applying the Law.

And especially for a corrupt Police Officer...The U.S. Courts would throw the Book at him.

Edited October 31, 201213 yr by jerrysteve

I Hate to say this and I will probably get suspened for using this word, but the Thai courts are real Pussies when it comes to applying the Law.

And especially for a corrupt Police Officer...The U.S. Courts would throw the Book at him.

Whether anyone on here approves of the sentence or not, at least he was convicted. And he got a 6.5 million baht fine.

He was a police officer? Where did it say that? The offence was committed in Thailand, wasn't it?...the US courts would have no jurisdiction over this case.

I Hate to say this and I will probably get suspened for using this word, but the Thai courts are real Pussies when it comes to applying the Law.

And especially for a corrupt Police Officer...The U.S. Courts would throw the Book at him.

no no no - there was the bank girl who got 100 years (reduced to 50) for embezzling 30,000 baht.

But then there was the guy who started the Asian financial meltdown - embezzled muli mills or bills - 10 years, suspended or something.

Guidelines in sentencing? Yes, of course. Like tax - two books - one for hi sos, one for lo sos.

A big liar and a very bad liar at that... Under those circumstances, he hardly deserves a suspended sentence.