A former golf caddie who is seven months pregnant has admitted to receiving 228 million baht in shares from billionaire contractor Chuwong Sae Tang for the security of herself and their baby shortly before his death in late June.
Kanthana Siwathanapol, 26, reported to the Crime Suppression Division in Bangkok on Thursday for questioning.
Chuwong, 52, the owner of Standard Performance Co, transferred 9.5 million shares to her name four days before he was found dead in a car after an accident on June 26.
The woman and her lawyer met assistant police chief Prawut Thavornsiri and central investigation chief Thitirat Nonghanpitak.
Lawyer Seksan Senachoo said that Ms Kanthana had known Chuwong for two years and the tycoon gave her the shares out of affection.
Before the share transfer, Chuwong had sought a copy of her ID card without saying why. She learned only later that the document was used for the share transfer. Some of the shares were then sold to buy other stocks, the lawyer said.
He confirmed that Ms Kanthana was seven months pregnant, but said she had not used that as leverage. She did not attend Chuwong's funeral because she did not have the courage to face his family. Instead, she had phoned a close aide of Chuwong to express her sorrow, Mr Seksan said.
Pol Lt Gen Prawut said Ms Kanthana admitted that she had an affectionate relationship with Chuwong and said she had met him and former deputy commerce minister Banyin Tangpakorn at a party.
Chuwong had voluntarily transferred the shares to her on June 22, so that she could learn how to trade shares. He had not given her any other assets, the woman said, according to Pol Lt Gen Prawut, the official police spokesman.
Police had yet to determine whether any signatures had been forged for the share transfers, the assistant police chief said.
Pol Col Akharadet Phimolsri, acting commander of the Crime Suppression Division, said Miss Kanthana was a native of Kanchanaburi province and got to know Chuwong and Mr Banyin at a party of a college. Later the woman made appointments with Chuwong through Mr Banyin's phone and they met at a golf course.
As the woman became pregnant, she sought life security, so Chuwong transferred his shares to her on June 22. She sold shares worth 30 million baht, bought a 10-million-baht house and gave part of the money to her parents, Pol Col Akharadet said. He insisted that police were treating Miss Kanthana as a witness.
Chuwong was found dead in the front passenger seat of a Lexus sports utility vehicle driven by Mr Banyin after the vehicle hit a tree on Chaloem Phrakiat Road, Bangkok's Prawet district, on June 26. The two men had first met during a course at the Thailand National Defence College.
Chuwong's family asked authorities to investigate his death after finding out about his share transfer to the former caddie, and to the mother of a 25-year-old female stock broker handling his trading account.
Media reported that both women also worked as models, and Mr Banyin had convinced Chuwong to open a trading account at the securities firm.