Police are preparing to charge engineers and state audit officials for their roles that contributed to the collapse of the State Audit Office (SAO) building in Bangkok during the March 28 earthquake.
A Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) source said on Wednesday that more than 100 witnesses have been questioned, with the investigation now about 80% complete.
Witnesses, SAO officials and the families of those who died or were injured at the site, as well as companies involved in the construction of the building, gave testimony as part of the investigation.
Those findings will be combined with reports based on evidence collected from the scene — such as steel, concrete samples and other materials — which will be examined by forensic police and experts.
The 30-storey SAO headquarters was the only high-rise structure to collapse on March 28 when an earthquake centred in Myanmar shook the Thai capital. As of this week searchers had recovered the bodies of 81 people, while 13 are still missing.
The police source said that at least five people were expected to face charges, including some who were previously interviewed as witnesses, as the case proceeds.
Among them are engineers suspected of negligence under Section 227 of the Criminal Code, which prohibits those in the profession from failing to follow proper standards during construction, and Section 238 if such negligence led to fatalities.
Audit officials may face charges, although on separate grounds of misconduct, the source said.
Officials of various agencies are currently discussing a framework for evidence collection at the collapse site in Chatuchak district. They include the Metropolitan Administration (BMA) Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning, Department of Special Investigation, police and forensic units.
Suriyachai Rawiwan, director of the BMA Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, said paperwork is now being prepared to hand over the site of the collapsed building to the SAO.
That would have to happen after the search and rescue operations are complete, he said, and a decision has to be made concerning where to store evidence related to the collapse.
In a related development, Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai told an anti-graft seminar on Wednesday that it is no simple task to investigate issues related to construction materials. Nonetheless, he said, all offenders “will be brought to justice” and it is the government’s job to bring the truth to light.
Two people portraying “mule accounts” greet Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai at an exhibition on addressing corruption, at Impact Exhibition and Convention Centre on Wednesday. (Photo: Chanat Katanyu)
