Thailand’s National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) has decided to charge former national police chief Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda and two senior police officers over their approval of a 2.1 billion baht project to procure a biometric system, to scan faces and fingerprints of passengers at major airports in the country.

The two other officers named in the case are Pol Lt-Gen Tinnapat Phummarin, then commissioner of the Office of Logistics, and Pol Maj-Gen Surapong Chaijan, then deputy commissioner of Region 7 Provincial Police Bureau.

According to the NACC, the charges concern the decision by the three officers to extend the delivery of the biometrics equipment to the Immigration Bureau in a way which was of benefit to the supplier.

According to the contract, the supplier was to deliver the equipment to the Immigration Bureau by May 2^nd, 2019, but the delivery deadline was later extended to June 30^th of the same year.

Then immigration police commissioner Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn asked Chakthip to cancel the biometric project and lodged a complaint with the NACC seeking an investigation. He claimed that an attempt on his life on January 7^th, 2019 was linked to his objection to the project.

In March this year, the NACC also decided to file charges against Chakthip and 45 other individuals over a 900 million baht project to procure 260 “smart” police patrol cars in the 2018-19 fiscal years.