Minda denies cash demands
Freelance actress Minda Seesubsin is suing her lover, popular Isan singer Zak Chumpae, for defamation after he claimed she demanded he stump up 2.2 million baht for missed income opportunities in the year they were together.
Accompanied by celebrity lawyer Nitithorn "James" Kaewto, Minda turned up at the Criminal Court last week to kick off proceedings against Zak after he told a press gathering last October that she demanded the money in an online chat with his mother, and, in dramatic scenes at a city department store, claimed before his fans that he had made her pregnant. Minda denies both allegations, which she says have damaged her reputation.
Zak Chumpae and Minda Seesubsin
The row started when Minda, her mother, manager and a close friend went before the media and challenged Zak to "man up" and discuss their dispute stemming from a messy break-up. In response, Zak and his manager denied he had acted dishonourably, and threatened to release a clip of her confronting him at the store.
One version of the clip, which later went public, shows her attempting to grab Zak by the arm after he performed for fans on Sept 8, but security guards intervened and escorted her away. Another clip shows the actress trying to waylay him again in the store's carpark, but security once again had to carry her away.
Minda says her court case is in response to defamation action brought against her and her elder sister by Zak himself, though that matter has not received the same amount of publicity.
Minda said she approached Zak at the store after the singer, best known for the huge Isan hit Kam Daeng, abruptly called off their relationship four or five months before. She had not been able to get in touch with him since. The pair were together a year, living in each other's homes and at one point making plans for marriage.
Minda Seesubsin
Zak's manager, Samart "Tum" Thongkaow, said Minda finally made contact with Zak's mother, and in an online chat asked her to stump up 2.2 million baht for the value of work she gave up at Zak's request. Minda said he asked her to turn down roles in two soap operas, a role as a host and spot in an MV to be with him instead. His mother said she would have trouble raising that amount.
"In the space of a bit more than a month, Minda cut the demand to just 50,000 baht, which we still had trouble accounting for," Tum sniffed. In the end Zak agreed to pay back 10,000 baht he agreed he had borrowed from her.
Minda's lawyer James, however, denies she ever mentioned the figure of 2.2 million, or that she claimed she was pregnant. Minda says Zak's claims made her look money-hungry and set off a torrent of abuse against her on social media.
Outside the court James said Zak's camp selectively released parts of the chat between Minda and Zak's mother. Though she listed off the missed income opportunities, she did not come up with the figure, and in fact told his mother, in relation to the 50,000 baht which she did mention, that it was up to her whatever she could afford to repay.
Referring to the missed opportunities, James said: "The question is did she really mean it, or was it just the emotions of a woman who was upset?"
In an interview last week, manager Tum unwittingly bolstered Minda's case when he admitted he came up with the 2.2 million figure himself. "Zak didn't come up with the figure at the press briefing, I did, my brain was working too fast," he admitted. "However, I never knew that counting up numbers could be wrong...she names me as the second defendant," he complained.
Tum said he would be happy for Zak to meet Minda for talks to see if they could avoid legal action, though Zak was fully booked up with concerts until February. This was too long to wait for the court, which decided to call the first hearing last week. The row continues.
So I get married a lot
The businessman and alleged conman who left his former bride with a wedding bill of 3.5 million baht has broken his silence, guaranteeing he will repay the debts.
Thananat 'Top' Siripiyaporn
Speaking from Hong Kong, Thananat "Top" Siripiyaporn, 50, denied making a living from defrauding the public, after a large cast of alleged victims came forward to air grievances about how he tricked them out of money, in some cases millions of baht, by portraying himself as a billionaire businessman with powerful contacts only to disappear later with their money.
They came forward after Top's former bride, a "pretty" product presenter from Buri Ram who calls herself Da in the media, says Top left her with the wedding expenses bill despite making repeated promises to pay. A cheque for 1.6 million baht, supposedly her dowry, also disappeared on her wedding day.
Top said Da, who has since divorced him, had no reason for concern. "I will repay the wedding debts, though she understands well that I wrote the cheque just for show," he said.
The pair met on March 15 at a restaurant; a day later, Top asked her to marry him. They registered their marriage at Huay Kwang district office on March 26 and held a lavish wedding on May 10 in Buri Ram, Da's home province, her family having met him just the once. Top showed his bride images of him in a private plane, surrounded by piles of cash, and in fancy sports cars. She believed his claims he was wealthy but awaiting a funds transfer from overseas.
Among the extravagant claims which have surfaced since is that Top has gone out with several actresses, is friends with the Shinawatra clan and had represented a past Thai government overseas in China. On the more prosaic side, market traders in Pathum Thani, where he used to live, say he and his former girlfriend, who also claims he defrauded her, sold fried mushrooms for 20 baht a box for four or five months this year.
Asked to explain himself, Top said he never claimed he had gone out with the actresses, and denied knowing former prime ministers Thaksin Shinawatra and his sister Yingluck. However, he says he had acted as an adviser to a former Pheu Thai MP from Lop Buri. He agrees he sold mushrooms in a market but says he was merely trying to help his former girlfriend get a head start. He agrees he took pictures of himself surrounded by extreme wealth, but says he did it in fun, and someone had stolen the images from his FB account.
He said if he had ripped off all his victims as alleged he would be facing legal action by now. Top admitted he had changed his name three times and been married six times. He is also a frequent traveller to Hong Kong and Singapore, immigration records show. Top said he plans to meet his lawyers in Singapore tomorrow before returning to Bangkok.
No vengeance sought
Rocker Sek Loso's former wife, Wiphakorn "Kan" Sukpimai, has bridled at news that Sek's ex-lover, model Apisaya "Eve" Pattanaworasap, whom she evicted from his home recently so she could rekindle their relationship, has teamed up with a net idol and former celebrity boxer who owes her money.
Wiphakorn 'Kan' Sukpimai and Sek Loso
Kan, now back with Sek, last week responded sharply to news that Eve is presenter for an anti-ageing cream venture launched last week by Kan's estranged former lover, net idol and former celebrity boxer Apirak "Sia Po" Arnon. "Those two deserve each other," she sniffed, denying she any longer held fond feelings for Sia Po, whom she saw briefly last year after lending him more than 50 million baht for a gambling and boxing venture, a debt she is now trying to reclaim.
Sia Po, recently freed from jail on an outstanding gambling charge, was in the news recently for donating 1 million in personal funds to the Ubon Ratchathani flood relief effort, and rustling up another 100 million baht in help from casinos across the border.
Earlier, commenting on his troubled relationship with Kan, Sia Po said he had paid off his debt to Kan, despite her claims to the contrary. He was speaking at the launch of his face cream Zeee, accompanied by his wife and presenter Eve. "Before I met her she had 33 million baht in her account, but had me come out and say I had borrowed 100 million including interest," he said. "I have now paid her back in full but for a purported 47 million baht interest bill. Who's going to pay that amount? I am now 100 times wealthier than her, and didn't hire Eve as presenter merely out of spite," he added.
For her part, Eve denies taking up the work as presenter to get back at Kan for driving her out of Sek's life, saying Sia Po's mother had taken her under her wing and had offered her the job. Listing off his career highs, Sia Po said he had made most of his money from an electric motorcycle venture, but had since branched out into fixed assets and now the 4-5 million baht face cream venture.
Kan, however, maintains Sia Po has yet to repay a single baht of the debt he owes her. He had repaid her 6 million baht over the past two years, but that was in relation to several fraud cases she had taken against him, not the loan, she claimed. "If he's really worth as much as he claims, let's see the bank book," she said, adding Sia Po was still meeting police and being called to court to answer to her complaints.
