The Criminal Court has sentenced self-professed gambler Siapo Po-arnon -- a popular internet figure who advised a House panel on gambling -- to 54 years in jail for luring people to gamble online, causing 1.7 billion baht in damages, and laundering money. However, it commuted the sentence to 20 years, the maximum allowed by the Criminal Code.
The ruling was handed down by the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road in response to a lawsuit filed by prosecutors against 21 defendants, including Siapo, formerly known as Apirak Chat-anont, for breaching the Gambling Act, the Anti-Money Laundering Act, and other laws. Altogether, 21 defendants, including Siapo and his mother, Banyen Channara, were found guilty of collusion in luring people to gamble on websites and mobile apps during 2018-2020.
In this case, Siapo, his mother and the other defendants -- Siapo's girlfriend, Juthamas; Siapo's brother, Puttharak Chatarnon; and Ploypitcha Padulang -- were charged with running the network. Other defendants faced charges of owning and using saving accounts used to transfer the gang's money, acquired from luring people to engage in gambling activities run by the gang.
Investigators found the gambling activities generated at least 1.76 billion baht, 841 million baht of which was intended for money laundering purposes.
The court found Siapo guilty on 18 counts of collusion in organising and promoting online gambling, for which he received 48 months in jail. He was also convicted on another 25 counts of money laundering offences, resulting in a sentence of a further 50 years. Under the Criminal Code, the net idol will serve a maximum of 20 years.