Watana on trial over Phang Nga land deals
The Criminal Court yesterday accepted an indictment filed against former interior minister Watana Asavahame and other 10 defendants in connection with a massive forest encroachment in Phang Nga's Kapong area.
The Department of Special Litigation (DSL) said the defendants encroached on forest reserves totalling in more than 8,734 rai - 987 of which they permanently acquired - between April 1986 and December 2005. The defendants pleaded not guilty and the court set February 19 for the first hearing for the public prosecutor's opening statement. The 10 defendants were later released on Bt500,000 bail each. Watana said he welcomed the indictment as it would give him a chance to explain publicly what had happened. He claimed to have bought the land lawfully and said he was curious that the people who sold the plots to him had ties with people in the Thaksin government.
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