Ex-Malaysian consul faces land charge
The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has completed its investigation into a land scheme on the tourist island of Koh Yao, recommending prosecution against four people, including a Malaysian national who is a former honorary consul to Morocco.
Apart from Tun Tex Hai, aka 'Valentino', 56, the three other suspects are relatives - Sudjai, Bunlert and Krajang Kheereephorn. They face charges of encroaching on a huge area of forest and public land. Jeeliang Fishery Phuket Co, which hired the three relatives, also faces the charge. DSI director-general Sunai Manomai-udom said yesterday that a number of officials who allegedly helped the suspects with document forgery had escaped criminal liability because the statute of limitations had run out. He said an ongoing extensive DSI probe would soon lead to a number of loan officers at two commercial banks on the island facing criminal liability and eventual prosecution for cooperating. Sunai did not say how the unidentified bank employees helped the firm and the suspects, but it was believed the total loan - worth around Bt3 billion - was granted unlawfully, as no collateral was made available in the suspects' loan requests. The DSI has separated the entire land-reaping scheme into 24 cases from 1988 to 1991. The encroachments covered 52 plots in a vast area of forest and public land. The DSI investigation report is contained in 6,000 pages and divided into two sets of cases: one allocated in three title deeds in Moo 3 of Koh Yao district on the island, and another three deeds in nearby areas in the same district. The four suspects have been released on bail worth Bt200,000 each. The first public prosecutor's hearing is set for April 27. The Thai wife of Tun Tex Hai, who was initially arrested, has not been charged.
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