Surachate probes bribery case against Pattaya police in Germany
Deputy National Police chief Pol General Surachate "Big Joke" Hakparn said on Friday that he would fly to Germany next month to investigate the case of a German tourist paying a bribe to escape charges of buying sex from a minor in Pattaya, Chonburi province.
German news outlet Deutsche Welle reported that the tourist was arrested on September 11, 2022, following a sting operation by local authorities. The tourist was then released on bail, but Deutsche Welle alleged that he paid a bribe of 1 million baht to the arresting officers to avoid being charged.
After meeting with officials from the Embassy of Germany in Bangkok, Surachate said that the tourist, who left Thailand in February this year, was already in the legal process in his home country. He added that he would travel to Germany to question the tourist about the bribe he had allegedly paid to Thai police, as well as to submit investigation documents and evidence to German prosecutors.
Surachate added that after interviewing his lawyer, the tourist could have withdrawn 1 million baht from his account to pay the lawyer’s fee and bail, which would allow him to leave the country.
On Wednesday Surachate said a former chief of Pattaya police station, a deputy station chief and the police officer in charge of the case would face disciplinary action for failing to observe regulations following arrests of foreign suspects, including this German tourist and another American suspect, who had fled the kingdom earlier.
Thai police would coordinate with Interpol to issue a red notice for the American suspect next week, he added.
The deputy police chief assured that the disciplinary investigation of the involved officers would be concluded within 30 days, adding that he would personally supervise the investigation to ensure total transparency.
