PATHUM THANI — Twenty employees of the Royal Thai Mint were summoned for questioning on Sunday in connection with the disappearance of 50 polished-gold commemorative coins marking HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn’s 60th birthday last year.
The coins, made in the denomination of 16,000 baht, went missing from a vault in the Coin Press Room of the Royal Thai Mint in Khlong Luang district on May 21. Police said the coins were flawed and were waiting to be destroyed when they were stolen from people they believed were staff members as there was no break-in marks on the vault.
The value of the missing coins was not known, but they had been sold to the public for 30,000 baht each.
Pathum Thani police chief Thaworn Kaosa-ard said the 20 employees were called in by Khlong Luang police for additional inquiries, with three of them, who were vault key holders, being at the centre of the investigation.
Pol Maj Gen Thaworn said officials had finished questioning about 30 people, who worked near the Coin Press Room, and received useful information to identify the suspects, thought to be at least two people.
His deputy, Pol Col Sommai Prasit said police could not check footage of security cameras around the press room because the system could store data for only 30 days. Royal Thai Mint officials had conducted their own internal investigation and had only just informed them about the theft on June 30.
The investigators will examine the scene again on Monday, he said.