Five senior police officers at Wang Thonglang Police Station have been transferred to inactive posts pending an inquiry following a raid on a massage parlour in Bangkok's Rama IX area under their supervision.
Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) commissioner Charnthep Sesavej said the transfer of the five policemen to the MPB is to ensure transparency in the fact-finding investigation into the incident.
The five officers are the Wang Thonglang station chief, the deputy chief for investigation, the deputy chief for crime suppression, an investigating inspector, and a crime suppression inspector.
The transfer follows the raid on Victoria's Secret Massage on Friday afternoon by a joint task force led by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) and local authorities following complaints that migrant and underage workers were allegedly forced to work as prostitutes there.
More than 100 women were rescued, most of them believed to come from neighbouring countries and had no ID cards. Boonsap Amornratanasiri, 55, aka "Pa Kob", was arrested during the raid.
The suspect and six others, who are still on the run, are wanted for human trafficking in the case of a 12-year-old Myanmar girl who was allegedly forced into prostitution at the massage parlour and recently rescued.
The Criminal Court yesterday approved the DSI's request to detain Mr Boonsap for another 12 days, until Jan 24, pending the gathering of evidence and questioning of witnesses.
Mr Boonsap, who is being detained at Bangkok Remand Prison, initially denied the charges.
Pol Lt Col Nattapong Khuharuangrong, a DSI agent, said there are more than 10 warrants against the suspect for alleged human trafficking and procurement for prostitution.
He said Mr Boonsap is a key suspect in the investigation and could lead authorities to other major players in the network and expand the investigation into extortion and money laundering.
He said authorities are tracking down six other people who are Mr Boonsap's alleged accomplices.
The DSI also found bookkeeping evidence that 14 officers from Wang Thonglang Police Station had received discounted or free services from Victoria's Secret in the month of September.
According to Pol Lt Col Nattapong, authorities are also inspecting the massage parlour to determine if the establishment provides medical services without permission.
He was responding to reports that the massage parlour housed what looked like a medical facility and had restricted medical supplies.
According to the DSI, the venue has lawful permission to operate but initial findings suggest that several women working there had been forced into prostitution.