A deputy national police chief has hinted that police know the whereabouts of two fugitive police officers wanted in the fatal torture of a suspect at Nakhon Sawan Muang police station.
The other five policemen allegedly involved have surrendered. The provincial court on Thurday approved their continued detention for another 12 days and denied bail.
Pol Gen Suchart Teerasawat said on Thursday that investigators had obtained information on the two wanted men's whereabouts, but whether they fled abroad or were still in Thailand could not be revealed at this stage.
National police chief Suwat Jangyodsuk has ordered that the hunt for the two men be intensified and the suspects brought to justice.
One of them is Pol Col Thitisan Utthanaphon, known to his colleagues as Jo Ferrari and until Tuesday the chief of Muang police station in Nakhon Sawan. It has been widely reported in Thai media that his girlfriend's father is chief of Provincial Police Region 6, which oversees Nakhon Sawan. She was expected to quickly end the relationship.
He was sacked from the force and a court warrant issued for his arrest after a video posted on social media showed him in an interrogation room with a drug suspect being suffocated to death with a plastic bag over his head. Thitisan fled before the warrant was issued.
Warrants were also issued for six of his subordinates also present at the interrogation.
The video sparked a storm of condemnation of the police colonel and the other men involved in the deadly torture.
Five of the suspects surrendered. Thitisan, 39, and another subordinate, Pol Lt Thoranin Makwanna, remained at large.
Pol Gen Suchart, who is heading the investigation, said the offence was clear in the video of the incident. Police investigators could verify those involved.
The five arrested suspects had cooperated fully.
His team had already investigated why the drug suspect was taken to Muang police station in Nakhon Sawan, but details could not be disclosed.
According to the investigation, there was no police record of the seizure of 100,000 meth pills on the day the drug suspect was tortured, as reported in the media. But there was an autopsy performed on the dead suspect, the deputy police chief said.
Investigators were still compiling the evidence and looking into the motive, whether it was to extort money from the suspect or if they were trying to find drugs hidden by the suspect.
The team had still to complete the interrogation of the five suspects arrested to date.
They had interrogated the dead suspect's wife and she confirmed that no drugs were seized from them that day, said Pol Gen Suchart.
The dead suspect had a prior record of drug possession, he said.
Suspect Jeerapong Thanapat, 24, died at Muang police station in Nakhon Sawan on Aug 6. He and his wife had been arrested on a bypass road in the province.
Early media reports said they were caught with 100,000 meth pills. Pol Gen Suchart said the reporters must have been quoting their own sources. (continues below)
Police surround a van taking the five arrested suspects to the Nakhon Sawan Provincial Court on Thursday. (Photo: Chalit Phumruang)
The five arrested police officers were taken to the Nakhon Sawan Provincial Court on Thursday, and investigators applied to detain them for a further 12 days. They are: Pol Maj Raveeroj, Pol Capt Songyot Khlainak, Pol Snr Sgt Maj Supakorn Nimchuen, Pol L/C Paweekorn Khammarieo and Pol Snr Sgt Maj Wisut Bhunkhiew.
The court approved their detention until Sept 6.
Pol Snr Sgt Maj Wisut surrendered to local police on Wednesday night, becoming the fifth of the suspects in police custody.
Pol L/C Paweekorn is reported to have been the station chief's driver. Thai media reports said he cried as he was taken into the court, saying "Please give me justice".
Another suspect was quoted as saying, "The truth will emerge".
Thitisan is known to his colleagues as "Jo Ferrari" because he owns so many sports cars, including a Lamborghini limited-edition Aventador LP 720-4 50 Anniversary special. He was reportedly the first Thai to own this model car.
Samarn Ditthong, 62, father of Pol Maj Raveeroj, one of the seven suspects, arrived at the Muang police station with a lawyer on Thursday morning. He was ready to apply for bail for his son, with 400,000 baht cash as a surety.
Pol Maj Raveeroj was quoted as saying that he had no intention of being involved in the torture. He had tried to intervene but his boss did not stop and assaulted the drug suspect. He said he felt bad about it, but in the end he was left with no choice but to follow orders.
Relatives of the other five detained suspects also arrived at the police station on Thursday morning to prepare bail applications.
Around 10am, police took the five men to the provincial court. Investigators opposed bail for the suspects, saying it was a serious offence which carried capital punishment.
All were ordered held in custody and denied bail. The court said the suspects were all lawmen but they still committed the offences. If released, they might interfere with the evidence, and they also posed a flight risk.
Police suspects are marched from Muang police station in Nakhon Sawan to a van to take them to the provincial court. (Photo: Chalit Phumruang)