Interior Ministry queries leave granted to Tak Bai suspect
Nakhon Phanom provincial administration told to explain why an assistant district chief, who faced charges over the Tak Bai massacre, was allowed to disappear before the case expired
The Interior Ministry has called on the Nakhon Phanom provincial administration to explain why an assistant district chief was allowed to go on leave even though he faced charges in the Tak Bai extra-judicial killings case.
Traisulee Traisoranakul, secretary-general to Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, said Ansit Samphantharat, permanent secretary for the Interior Ministry, expects an answer from the provincial administration within 15 days.
She said Ansit also asked the provincial administration on Tuesday to explain when it had learned that Wissanu Lertsongkhram was a suspect in the Tak Bai case.
The administration is also expected to clarify whether it was informed by police that Wissanu was wanted under an arrest warrant and whether police sought help to locate him.
The provincial administration authorities have also been asked to explain what they did after police informed them that Wissanu was wanted on an arrest warrant.
Wissanu was among eight suspects charged by public prosecutors for allegedly causing the death of 78 protesters, who died of suffocation when crammed into army trucks to be taken from Narathiwat’s Tak Bai district to an army camp in Pattani.
The statute of limitations on the Tak Bai massacre case expired at midnight last Friday (October 25) with none of the 14 defendants facing justice. Apart from the case filed against seven suspects by the public prosecutors, the relatives of 48 victims filed another lawsuit against seven suspects for causing the death of 85 protesters.
Seven protesters had been shot dead during a crackdown by troops at the protest site. One suspect was named in both lawsuits.
Wissanu reportedly applied for annual leave from October 15 to 18, and though his immediate boss cancelled his application as soon as he learned of the arrest warrant, he could not be contacted. He eventually returned to work on October 26.
On Tuesday, Anutin said that though Wissanu could not be fired, he would have his ministry’s permanent secretary investigate the leave.
