The Military Court has approved an arrest warrant for the webmaster of ASTV Manager for disseminating a forged statement from the Royal Household Bureau about His Majesty the King’s health, police spokesman Prawut Thawornsiri said on Saturday.
The Technology Crime Suppression Division, which sought the warrant on Friday, charged Niran Yaowapha with lese majeste under Section 112 of the Criminal Code, and with breaching the Computer Crime Act.
Earlier, Mr Niran voluntarily met with police in Chana Songkram on Tuesday and told them that some ill-intentioned people had distributed the statement, which was later posted on ASTV Manager’s news website on Feb 2.
He said he immediately removed the post from the website after the statement was found to be fake.
ASTV executives on Tuesday removed Mr Niran from his job and halved his wages following the mistake.
Police earlier arrested 25-year-old musician Krit Butradeejin, a supporter of the red-shirt United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD), in connection with the case. He was accused of distributing the statement on his Facebook page on Wednesday from his home in Phetchabun.
Following the arrest, UDD leader Jatuporn Prompan called on police to take action against the ASTV Manager website in the interest of fairness. Otherwise, he said, it would look like the red shirts were being set up.
ASTV Manager was founded by Sonthi Limthongkul, the leader of the yellow-shirt movement that has campaigned against former premier Thaksin Shinawatra and his UDD supporters.
National police chief Somyot Pumpunmuang said on Friday that charges would be laid against all those who distributed the forged statement publicly.
That could run into the thousands of people who might have shared the post on social media. Police said Mr Krit claimed to have received the statement from a person affiliated with the UDD. He shared it with about 4,000 people on his Facebook page.
However, it is still not known who created the fake document. Pol Lt Gen Prawut said earlier that police suspected the statement might have been sent from abroad.
"In principle, people who distributed the forged statement are all culprits," said Pol Gen Somyot.
Mr Krit has not yet been charged pending further investigation. He is currently being detained at the 11th Infantry Regiment in Bangkok and has not been allowed to see a lawyer.
Winthai Suvaree, a spokesman for the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), insisted that officers would adhere to human rights principles in handling Mr Krit's case. Since he had not yet been charged, Mr Krit did not lead a lawyer at this stage, Col Winthai added.
Red-shirt lawyer Winyat Chartmontri earlier said he had contacted the Judge Advocate-General's Department and asked to see Mr Krit, but his request was denied.
UDD spokesman Worawut Wichaidith has also called for Mr Krit to be treated in line with principles of justice.
"We do not want authorities to indiscriminately target Mr Krit or the red shirts as no clear evidence is shown that Mr Krit was the one who made the statement slandering the institution," Mr Worawut said.
Police identified Mr Krit as being "among the first group of people" to share the statement.
In a related development, the suspects linked with Sunday's bomb attacks near Siam Paragon have reportedly been detained by soldiers and taken to a safe house for questioning, according to security sources.
The sources said more than two suspects had been taken to a safe house for interrogation.
It remains unclear whether the two are the same men seen in CCTV footage planting the bombs on the walkway between Siam BTS station and Siam Paragon, who now have warrants out for their arrest. The warrants do not name them.
Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) commissioner Sriwara Rangsiphramanakul, however, refused to confirm the detention, saying this is confidential. He said only that it was common to take suspects in for questioning.
Pol Gen Somyot later insisted none of the suspects have been arrested. "It is a sensitive case that needs concrete evidence, so I will not set a time frame for investigators," he said.
According to police sources, the two suspected bombers were seen on CCTV footage near Victory Monument getting out of a public van that travels between Saraburi and Bangkok before before taking a taxi to Paragon to plant the bombs.
Officers also say the devices used in the Paragon blasts are similar to those used in the 10 bomb attacks in Bangkok on Dec 31, 2006.
Sources said the police were focusing on "leaders of a certain political movement seen to have lost out in politics".