A former social security officer who embezzled more than 10 million baht from the Social Security Fund (SSF) was arrested yesterday in Bangkok.
The suspect, identified only as Ms Nithima, 52, was arrested at the company where she now works in Bangkok's Suan Luang district. The arrest was jointly conducted by the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) and the Anti-Corruption Division (ACD), according to a media source. The suspect was wanted on a warrant issued on May 20, 2022, by the Criminal Court for a corruption and misconduct case.
The charges included being a state official responsible for managing state assets to embezzle or allow others to misappropriate state assets for personal gain under Section 147, misconduct in office under Section 157 of the Criminal Code and misrepresentation of official authority to deceive others for personal gain or for another's benefit.
Between December 2007 and September 2014, while serving as a senior legal officer at a Social Security Office in Bangkok, the suspect allegedly forged official documents to make people believe she had the authority to handle SSF payments.
Ms Nithima's responsibility was to take legal action against entities submitting their Social Security contributions via bad cheques.
Her duty was to file the cases to the civil court to recover the missing amount and ensure full payment to the SSF.
However, when the SSF won the cases, and the funds were recovered, she allegedly embezzled the money, falsely claiming the lawsuits were ongoing or that the payments had not yet been received.
Her action caused the SSF to lose more than 10 million baht.
Ms Nithima was taken into custody and handed over to the office of central corruption and misconduct case litigation for legal proceedings. She initially denied all charges, said the source.