Wife of ousted prime minister and her brother charged of tax evasion
Public prosecutor on Monday filed lawsuits against Khunying Pojaman Shinawatrra, wife of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, her brother, Bhanapot Damapong, and her personal secretary, Kanjanapa Honghern, for major tax evasion.
The three reported themselves to the Criminal Court on Monday morning and posed bail of Bt6 million for each.
They appeared at the Criminal Court at about 9.30am to hear the charge. At the press time, their lawyer are submitting Bt5-million bank accounts for bail for each person.
Court has set May 24 to check proposing evidence of both parties.
If convicted, they would face jail terms of up to 14 years each for tax evasion.
This is apparently the first time that a wife of a Thai prime minister was charged with criminal-linked charge and tax irregularities.
Public prosecutors believed that Pojaman, Bhanapot and Kanjanapa were involving in filing income tax returns in relation to a shock transaction in 2000. They were alleged to unlawfully claim tax exemption.
Prosecutors earlier said they would treat the case as a criminal conspiracy, and the matter could not be settled out of court even if the defendants later decided to meet their tax obligations.
Based on the Assets Examination Commission's report, the defendants were liable for Bt500 million in unpaid tax, he said.
If convicted, they would have to meet their tax liabilities and pay a fine of up to Bt400,000 on top of any time served in jail, he said.
The Nation
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