Police chief to retire, won't be axed

Patcharawat is scheduled to retire in September and the government has hinted it sees no benefit from a change in police leadership given this.

"I am not aware of any plans to change the national police chief," Suthep said in his capacity as overseer of the Royal Thai Police.

He said he was puzzled by speculative news reports on the fate of Patcharawat.

He insisted he had no information that Patcharawat had tried to tamper with the police proceedings on the assassination attempt against Sondhi Limthongkul, co-leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy.

Patcharawat's deputy General Thanee Somboonsap, lead investigator in the case, had never blamed his boss for meddling and the two appeared to have no conflict in their work, he said.

He vowed full cooperation from the government to assist in solving the case, saying Thanee had been reporting directly to the prime minister.

In a move seen as trying to quell speculation, the deputy prime minister included the national police chief in his entourage for an inspection trip to the deep South.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said he was determined to ensure justice in steering the investigation into the Sondhi case to a successful conclusion.

Abhisit said he would meet Suthep today to discuss what the government should do to clear "hurdles" that Thanee faces.

Patcharawat said he did not meddle in Thanee's work and was ready to do everything in his power to safeguard and help the inquiry advance. He said he had not been told about any obstacles, as Thanee did not report his progress to him.

Thanee dismissed speculation about the rift with his boss. He said he expected to round up the two suspects in the case soon, so the investigation was likely to move forward.