Suspended deputy national police chief, Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, filed a petition today with the chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), demanding an investigation into Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s alleged abuse of authority.
Surachate is asking the NACC to investigate the prime minister’s appointment of Pol Gen Torsak Sukvimol as the national police chief last year, his own suspension from the police service by the acting national police chief and the motives behind the investigation into the BNKMaster online gambling platform, as part of which he and some of his close aides have been charged with money laundering.
Surachate has also challenged the authority of the police investigation team. He claims that they failed to submit their findings to the NACC within the legally mandated 30 days of receiving a complaint against him and his men, hence their investigation has no standing and they have no authority to conduct the probe.
Surachate and Torsak were transferred out of the Royal Thai Police to the Prime Minister’s Office by the prime minister, pending the outcome of the investigation into the online gambling network. Last week, Surachate was temporarily suspended from police service, pending a disciplinary probe.
The embattled deputy police chief appealed for justice to Police Service Commission for Merit System Protection last week, demanding that the suspension order be withdrawn.
He says he believes there is deliberate attempt to prevent him from climbing the ladder to become the next national police chief. He also said he believes he will be reinstated.
