Police officers suspended amid sex-bribe claims

Three police commanders in Chaiyaphum’s Muang district have reportedly been transferred to inactive posts, pending a probe over bribe allegations involving underage prostitution.

A source at the Royal Thai Police said the Muang Chaiyaphum precinct superintendent Col Pongpat Chaengmeunwai, inspector Maj Pornchai Saengsila and Pornchai’s deputy inspector Capt Uthai Hongwiset had been summoned to the provincial headquarters.

Evidence of bribery was uncovered after the Department of Special Investigation and the Provincial Administration Department, acting upon an NGO’s complaint to the Dhamrongtham Centre, conducted a sting operation on Tuesday night to arrest the owner of a Muang district’s karaoke bar, Kanchana Thongluan.

The woman allegedly procured two 16-year-old girls, who were among the seven Thai sex workers there, to provide sexual services to customers.

She reportedly said she charged the girls’ customers Bt1,200 each for sexual services and pocketed Bt300 as a commission.

The bar owner also told police that a Muang Chaiyaphum policeman had collected tens of thousands of baht per month from her in exchange for allowing her to open the bar without a proper licence and run an underage sex business.

Officers found Line chat messages between Uthai and Kanchana as evidence, it was reported.

The three officers were unavailable for comment.

The Nation 

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