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Published on February 13, 2008

The Chumphon-based Border Patrol 41 had sought Bt2.93 million to pay informants in 390 drug arrests made by its officers, including Pol Captain Nat Chonnithiwanich, the key suspect in kidnapping and extortion charges, between 2005 and 2007.

ONCB secretary-general Kitti Limchaikij said yesterday documents showed a little over Bt10,000 was actually received by informants. Nat alone received around Bt200,000 from the ONCB. The drugs seized in arrests made by Border Patrol 41 teams averaged little in monetary value.

He said the ONCB had never recalled reward or bounty money from police officers, and it may require a court order. Reward money already designated but not yet released has been frozen.

Democrat MP Aphichart Sakdiseth said he had talked two officers from Border Patrol 42 based in Nakhon Si Thammarat to turn themselves in to the Phet Kasem police in Bangkok over the next few days.

He said the two officers told him they had never participated in any wrongful arrests made by Nat and fellow officers, and that they were worried about not being released on bail after they had turned themselves in.

The Nation