Exiled PM and his wife have to be present to receive charges on SC Asset : DSI
Exiled prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife, Pojaman, have to be present to receive the formal charges on alleged share concealment in the case linking British Virgin Islands-registered Win Mark with his family's property company, SC Asset.
Department of Special Investigation (DSI)'s chief Sunai Manomai-udom said that Thaksin, Pojaman, and Busaba Damapong, were asked to report themselves with DSI between June 26-29.If Thaksin claimed that he could not be present because he is now in a foreign country, the investigators will consider whether he intended not to receive the formal charges or not. If he is considered intending to do so, the investigators will issue an order again. If he failed to be present, an arrest warrant will be issued. DSI on Tuesday charged Thaksin, his wife and Busaba, of alleged share concealment in the case linking British Virgin Islands-registered Win Mark with SC Asset. The Securities and Exchange Commission has accused Thaksin of failing to inform the authorities of his shareholding in OAI Property, the old name of SC Asset. In filing his stake, Thaksin did not include the shares he transferred to Win Mark, saying that Win Mark was not his company. If convicted under the Securities and Exchange Act, Thaksin would be subject to up to five years' imprisonment and a fine no more than twice the value of the shares he offered to sell to related parties. The value of shares Thaksin sold in 2000 was Bt969 million, meaning he could be fined Bt1.938 billion. In 2000, Thaksin said he had sold shares in three property companies - OAI Property, PT and SCK Asset - to Win Mark for a total of Bt906 million. However, the Democrats found that Win Mark also held shares in two other companies: SC Office Park and Worth Supplies. Total investment in the five firms was Bt1.5 billion. In his 2000 statement, Thaksin said Win Mark had bought the shares on expectation of reaping profits when the firms were listed. However, Win Mark had sold shares in OAI Property to Value Asset Fund of Malaysia (VAF) in 2003, and three weeks later VAF sold the shares to Overseas Globe Fund and Offshore Dynamic Fund Inc. The three funds share the same address in Malaysia. Remarkably, the sale took place before OAI Property, later renamed SC Asset, was about to list on the Stock Exchange of Thailand in November of that year. VAF also transferred the right to buy 70 million new shares of OAI at their Bt10 par value to Thaksin's daughters, Pinthongta and Paetongtarn. Based on the initial public offering price of Bt15 per share, the two children automatically netted a total profit of Bt350 million. The Nation
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