The delivery of the Supreme Court's final ruling in the trial of three men charged with the murder of slain environmentalist Charoen Wat-aksorn 11 years ago was on Thursday postponed to Oct 13, after one defendant pleaded illness and another failed to appear.
The prosecution initially arraigned five men -- Saneh Lekluan, 41, Prajuab Hinkaew, 39, lawyer Thanu Hinkaew, 51, Manote Hinkaew, 47, and Juea Hinkaew, 76, a former kamnan of tambon Bo Nok and father of Mr Thanu and Mr Manote -- on charges of murder and conspiracy to murder.
Charoen was shot down on June 21, 2004, as he left a bus in Prachuap Khiri Khan's Bo Nok district. He was a leader in the protests against the Bo Nok and Hin Krud coal-fired power plants planned by Gulf Electric Co.
It is believed Charoen's murder was linked to the protests against the power plants, which were later cancelled.
Police arrested two alleged gunmen, Mr Saneh and Mr Prachuap, and two alleged masterminds, Mr Thanu and Mr Manote. The Department of Special Investigation later arrested another alleged conspirator, Mr Juea.
Mr Saneh and Mr Prajuab confessed to the murder, while the three other defendants denied all charges.
During the trial, Mr Saneh and Mr Prajuab died in jail in 2006 in mysterious circumstances.
In 2008, the Criminal Court acquitted Mr Manote and Mr Juea, but sentenced Mr Thanu to death. Mr Thanu, however, was acquitted by the Appeals Court in March 15, 2013 on grounds of insufficient evidence.
The court ruled that although the two suspected gunmen confessed to investigators that they were hired by Mr Thanu to kill Charoen, their confessions were not sufficient evidence and their testimony could not be confirmed in court because they had died.
Subsequently, more than 300 outraged residents of Prachuap Khiri Khan gathered in front of the Appeals Court on April 23, 2013, calling for transparency in the case of the slain environmentalist.
Charoen’s widow, Rak Bo Nok Group president Korn-uma Pongnoi, who led the group, then appealed to the Supreme Court against all three acquittals.
The Criminal Court summoned the three defendants to hear the reading of the Supreme Court's decision on Thursday, but only Mr Manote showed up. He submitted a request for a postponement, explaining that his father was ill and could not appear. He submitted a medical report to the court confirming Mr Juea's illness.
The court agreed to defer the reading of the judgement to Oct 13 and issued a warrant for the arrest of Mr Thanu for failing to appear in court.
Mrs Korn-uma, who arrived at the court with her supporters, said the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case would show whether there would finally be justice, or not, in the case, even though the two gunmen had died during the trial.
Residents help erect a bronze statue of Charoen Wat-aksorn, the activist who led a campaign against the Bo Nok coal-fired power plant in Prachuap Khiri Khan, on June 18, 2007. The statue was commissioned to mark the third anniversary of his murder on June 21, 2004 and erected at Bo Nok intersection close to the spot where he was killed. (Bangkok Post file photo)