Woman in sex scandal with ex-DPM charged with dowry fraud

Woman in sex scandal with ex-DPM charged with dowry fraud

Whistle-blowing lawyer Sitra Biabangkerd posted this photo of a woman and a man in red, along with the message,
Whistle-blowing lawyer Sitra Biabangkerd posted this photo of a woman and a man in red, along with the message, "The husband of the woman was shocked to see images of his wife having a sex affair with a former deputy prime minister". (Photo: Sitra Biabangkerd, secretary-general of the Foundation of People's Lawyers Facebook)

Police have charged a woman, her husband and her parents with fraud involving a dowry and a former deputy prime minister involved in a sex scandal.

In a document being circulated on social media, a police chief investigator at Bang Yi Khan police station in Bangkok notified the complainant on Tuesday that police have completed their investigation report, which involves four suspects - Ms Thanyawarin, Mr Jirawut, Ms Thanyawan and Mr Phong-anan. All surnames were redacted in the copy posted online.

All were charged with collusion in fraud. Police had sought approval from the Taling Chan Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant for Mr Phong-anan and the court approved it on Jan 5.

The investigation team had already submitted their report and handed the first, second and third suspects over to public prosecutors on Tuesday. The case was being handled by public prosecutors, according to the document.

Thai media reported that the complainant was a former deputy prime minister said to be aged 80 years whose name starts with the letter “Y’’ and he had filed a complaint against the woman Thanyawarin, her husband Mr Jirawut and her parents for collusion in fraud as he wanted the return of his dowry.

Earlier,"Y" had openly visited many places with the woman and introduced her to friends as he had already given the dowry to her parents.

The alleged sex scandal hit the media spotlight after prominent lawyer Sitra Biabangkerd posted on his Facebook on Saturday that  a former deputy prime minister had been involved in an extramarital affair with the wife of another man in October last year.

Mr Sitra said the woman's husband had asked him for assistance after finding out about the affair in December. Among the evidence the man had shown Mr Sitra were intimate photographs of the pair, he said in the post.

The husband filed for divorce and sought to initiate legal proceedings against the politician on Dec 30, but according to Mr Sitra the politician in question countersued, claiming he had been seduced and defrauded

After filing for divorce, Mr Sitra said, the man had received several threats and he had asked him to tell the public about the sex scandal.

The whistle-blowing lawyer did not directly identity the politician in question in his post, to avoid defamation charges, but he gave hints - saying he served as a deputy prime minister in the Yingluck Shinawatra government and enjoyed playing golf. The politician had not been associated with the Pheu Thai Party since 2018 and his name started with the letter “Y’’, the lawyer said in his social media  post.

Former deputy prime minister Yongyuth Wichaidit on Monday came out and denied claims he had an affair with a married woman.

During a media briefing on Monday, the lawyer said his client had ample evidence - still photos and videos.

In December last year, the client noticed his wife's behaviour had changed, prompting him to monitor her activities. He opened her mobile phone and saw a conversation in Line chat between his wife and another man. He was shocked to also see their nude photos, and was extremly shocked upon learning who the man in the photos was -  a former deputy prime minister who was well recognised.

"Their affair likely occured in October last year. My client asked for a divorce, but his wife rejected it  claiming she still loved him. The former deputy prime minister is fully aware that the woman is married.  My client consulted me about filing  a suit to divorce her.  I advised him that he could file for divorce and demand compensation from her and her lover.

"Subsequently, a civil suit was filed on Dec 30 last year,'' Mr Sitra said.  

Lawyer Sitra posted on his Facebook page on Wednesday afternoon that the fraud case was fun, and asked who was involved in an organised gang. He shrugged off a move by the former deputy prime minister  to ask for the return of the dowry given to the woman, saying it could not be returned by law because the man knew well that he had registered his marriage to his existing wife.

Do you like the content of this article?
COMMENT (7)