The Election Commission (EC) has decided to file a criminal suit against Sira Jenjaka, a former Palang Pracharath Party MP for Bangkok, in connection with a previous conviction of fraud, says a source in the EC.
If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in jail, a fine of 20,000-200,000 baht and be deprived of his right to contest an election for 20 years.
The EC said Sira applied to contest the 2019 general election in Bangkok's Laksi district knowing his conviction had rendered him ineligible to seek public office.
He went on to win the MP seat, later forcing a by-election when the fraud conviction became known. Applying to run in elections with a criminal conviction is against the Election of MPs Act. Sira was stripped of his MP status by the Constitutional Court last year.
He was judged ineligible to contest the 2019 election due to a fraud conviction by the Pathumwan District Court in 1995 and given an eight-month jail term.