Review of case escaped prisoner claims was unfairly handled ordered

ATTORNEY-GENERAL Amnat Jedcharoenruk today (Nov. 25) ordered a review of a case that a prisoner who has been on the run in the south for weeks claimed in a widely-circulated video clip was handled unfairly, Naewna newspaper said.

Mr. Prayut Phetkhun, the attorney-general’s spokesman, said the allegation by convict at large Chaovalit Thongduang, aka Sia Paeng Nanode, who had escaped from hospital on Oct. 22 that he alone was sentenced to jail but other co-defendants were not prosecuted had to be investigated.

The Chief Prosecutor for Region 9 was ordered to gather the facts in this case and file a report.

“An order was given for the Academic Office to coordinate with Region 9’s chief prosecutor and analyse this case at their office.

“The media will be quickly informed once the results are known.

“As for the implicated prosecutor, he has already given an explanation,” he said.

Chaovalit was sentenced to 20 years and six months in jail by Phatthalung Provincial Court last year for attempted murder in an armed clash with police during the abduction of a drug suspect.

Earlier Justice Minister Pol. Col. Thawee Sodsong too set up a committee to investigate the facts in this case  with this to be revived if new evidence is found.

Regarding the escaped prisoner’s claim that he had not been treated fairly because the court had sentenced him alone to jail even though there were others involved in the criminal action but were not prosecuted, Thawee said the police had filed charges against a total of seven suspects.

However while he had not got the details of this case from the prosecutor,  when it reached the court Chaovalit alone was named with the prosecutor saying over 20 people were involved  in the incident that occurred  on July 2, 2019 but they had escaped and not brought to justice while adding that an M19 machine gun was used to abduct the drug suspect.

An all-out hunt by a large police team for this convict on southern Banthat mountain range that had been continuing for weeks was called off yesterday amid torrential rain.

However police teams from Phatthalung and three southernmost provinces will remain at an operation centre near Tha Chang and Mom Chui waterfalls in Tamot district. All checkpoints also will continue to be manned.

CAPTION:

Chaovalit Thongduang, aka Sia Paeng Nanode. Top photo: Matichon, Front Page photo: Thai Rath

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