Published on June 24, 2005

The owner of a building that housed the large gambling den raided by police on Wednesday was yesterday sentenced to one year in prison.

The Northern Bangkok District Court also sentenced four bookies arrested at the den to six-month jail terms. The 353 gamblers – 186 men and 167 women – nabbed in the predawn raid were fined between Bt2,000 and Bt5,000 each.

The building’s owner was identified as Paisal Kamontri, 58, and the four bookies as Jirasak Udnun, 24, Chaiyos Sericharoensatit, 45, Songkran Charoentham, 44, and Chan Singchamnong, age unknown. Jirasak, Chaiyos and Songkran were released on bail of Bt1.6 million each.

Although all the defendants confessed to the charges of illegal gambling, the court did not commute their sentences because they were involved in one of the biggest gambling dens in the country. The den was equipped with high security measures to prevent police searches and arrests and had long operated in defiance of the law, the court ruled.

Police stormed the gambling den in the Taopoon area, allegedly owned by a prominent politician, following a two-month investigation and impounded Bt1.1 million in cash from the gaming tables, betting chips with a value of Bt56 million, a large safe deposit box, gambling paraphernalia and valuables pawned by customers in exchange for betting chips.

The court set aside half of the total fines collected from the gamblers, amounting to Bt1.5 million, as a reward for the policemen involved in the raid.

An unidentified middle-aged man suspected to have links with the den came to court to pay the fines for all the gamblers.

The suspects were brought to court in five buses accompanied by crime suppression police and 20 commandos.

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