The South Criminal Court sentenced a prominent jailed activist lawyer to an additional two years in prison on Monday, for lese majeste in comments during a speech he made at a 2021 protest, his lawyer said.
Human Rights lawyer Arnon Nampa, 39, was given a sentence of two years and 20 days and a fine of 100 baht for insulting the monarchy, violatimg an emergency decree and other charges, lawyer Junjira Junpaew told Reuters.
"Arnon denied all wrongdoing," Ms Junjira said. His team would appeal the sentence.
The latest ruling relates to a Harry Potter-themed rally in front of the Bangkok Arts and Culture Centre at Pathumwan intersection on Aug 3, 2011.
Arnon is currently serving eight years in prison on two charges of committing lese majeste, one stemming from a speech at a political rally in 2020 and the other from a social media post in 2021. He has been in prison since September last year.
The latest sentence is consecutive on the other convictions, which means Arnon will now serve 10 years and 20 days, according to legal aid group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
Monday's judgement was the third of 14 cases against Arnon, a lawyer and protest leader of the youth-led democracy movement that held protests in Bangkok in 2020 calling for reform of the monarchy.
At least 272 people have been charged with lese majeste since 2020, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.
Thailand's lese majeste law is one of the world's toughest. It is intended to protect the monarchy from criticism and carries a maximum sentence of up to 15 years for each perceived royal insult. Reformists argue that it is being misused by the government for political purposes.