The Criminal Court has sentenced a former senior police officer to three years in jail for attempting to bribe a Constitutional Court judge twice in the Thai Rak Thai party dissolution case in 2006, though he claimed he was only "joking" with the judge when he made the bribe offers.
In the court's ruling Wednesday, Pol Col Charnchai Netirattakarn, former chief of Pho Kaew station in Nakhon Pathom's Sam Phran district, was given a three-year prison sentence for attempted bribery.
On Oct 16, 2006 Pol Col Charnchai met ML Krairirk Kasemsant, the Constitutional Court judge, at his office in the Supreme Court compound and offered to give the judge 15 million baht in exchange for his "assistance" in the Thai Rak Thai Party dissolution case, said the court.
Pol Col Charnchai claimed what he said to ML Krairirk that day was just a friendly joke, and he was there only because he wanted to deliver an invitation card to a law alumni reunion party. On Oct 22, Pol Col Charnchai visited ML Krairirk again at his home and offered to double the bribe.
According to the court ruling, Pol Col Charnchai also told ML Krairirk during the first visit that he needed his help with the case because he owed "Khunying Or" a favour. He also asked for a 5% kickback from the 15 million baht bribe offered at the meeting.
By saying "Khunying Or", people would know Pol Col Charnchai was referring to Khunying Potjaman Shinawatra, who was then wife of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the court said. Khunying Potjaman later divorced Thaksin in 2008 and changed her last name to na Pombejra.
The Criminal Court judges weren't convinced by Pol Col Charnchai's claim that his offers were simply jokes because Pol Col Charnchai still went to ML Krairirk's home and made a new offer even though the judge had turned down the first offer.
The judges were also not convinced that Pol Col Charnchai was as close to ML Krairirk as he claimed to be because he had not called or visited him in person to congratulate him when he was given earlier promotions.
Pol Col Charnchai claimed his "jokes" were based on previous media reports about fierce lobbying to abort the Thai Rak Thai Party dissolution case. However, the court said this contradicted the fact that the media actually began reporting about attempts to derail the case in June 2007, which was after he had visited ML Krairirk.
On May 30, 2007, the court's nine judges voted to dissolve the Thai Rak Thai Party along with three other parties for electoral violations.