The Appeals Court has reversed the lower court's judgement and convicted and sentenced Sgt Maj Sirisak Janlueng to life imprisonment for masterminding the shooting of football referee Thanom Borikut in Sept 2013.
In a ruling read out at the Criminal Court in Bangkok on Tuesday, Sgt Maj Sirisak, 56, formerly of military intelligence, was found guilty of hiring taxi motorcyclist Kosin Seenualkham to take a gunman to shoot 46-year-old Thanom dead in the grounds of the Sports Authority of Thailand in Bangkok's Bang Kapi district on Sept 4, 2016. Mr Thanom survived but was seriously wounded.
Prosecutors earlier told the court that Sgt Maj Sirisak and two accomplices provided 100,000 baht to pay Kosin and alleged gunman Sukhum Daengkulwanich, 34. Kosin was reported to have died of a heart attack last year aged 21 years.
Police linked the shooting of Mr Thanom to his refereeing of a match between Insee Police United and Buriram United on July 24, 2013.
On Aug 26, 2015, the Criminal Court acquitted Sgt Maj Sirisak, giving him the benefit of doubt because the prosecutors had only the statement from Kosin linking the defendant to the crime.
The Appeals Court said Sgt Maj Sirisak had tried to check on Mr Thanom's citizenship registration. He and his associates had also talked to each other by mobile phone while Mr Thanom was refereeing other football matches in July 2013. It was believed they were discussing the target for the shooting.
The Appeals Court did not believe that Kosin would have given false information about Sgt Maj Sirisak, who supervised his motorcycle queue and he held in respect. Kosin had given the number of his former lover's bank account to receive a transferred sum of 20,000 baht from Sgt Maj Sirisak.
Relatives planned to seek Sgt Maj Sirisak's release on bail pending an appeal to the Supreme Court.
In April this year the Asian Football Confederation suspended Mr Thanom, a Fifa-level assistant referee, pending investigation into allegations of match-mixing.
In 2014 he and other match officials were taken to swear on oath before the Emerald Buddha that they had never done anything wrong and would do their jobs straightforwardly and honestly.
In 2009, Mr Thanom, who was then an army sergeant and Saraburi sports official, was arrested in the province on a charge of murdering his sports supervisor, Thammanoon Prathumman, with a bomb.
He allegedly confessed to the murder and the Criminal Court sentenced him five years in prison. Thanom appealed the judgment and was granted bail.