Red-shirt core leader Jatuporn Prompan was sentenced yesterday to a further 12 months in jail in another libel case.
Appearing in court after five months in prison, Jatuporn looked lean and trim after having lost 28kg. Jatuporn arrived at the court smiling. His wife, son and lawyer were among the people waiting for him. Jatuporn told reporters he had lost a lot of weight since he was last seen in public as a result of dieting and exercise.
The Supreme Court halved two-year prison terms given to Jatuporn by the lower court for accusing former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of ordering soldiers to kill protesters.
The sentence concerned rally speeches made by Jatuporn, then leader of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD), in 2009 making accusations against Mr Abhisit during UDD protests on Oct 11 and 17 in 2009 when Mr Abhisit, the Democrat Party leader, served as prime minister. Mr Abhisit sued him for wrongfully accusing him of issuing an order for soldiers to kill the demonstrators and of stalling the submission of a petition seeking a royal pardon for ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Jatuporn was found guilty.
Earlier, the Criminal Court and the Appeal Court sentenced him to one year in jail on each count, a consecutive prison term of two years. The Supreme Court halved the jail term to six months on each count, or 12 months in total, as Jatuporn confessed.
Before the court ruling yesterday, the red-shirt co-leader had been serving a one-year jail term related to another libel case involving Mr Abhisit. He has been behind bars since July 20.
In another case, the Phatthalung Provincial Court handed down jail terms on Wednesday to former senator and People's Democratic Reform Committee key figure Thawi Phumsingharach, 72, and 10 others for disrupting an advance vote and election officials in the province back in 2013.
Thawil was given a five-year prison term, and the other 10 people sentences ranging from one to five years for their role in obstructing the Muang district poll on Dec 28-31 and preventing the provincial election commission from performing its duty.