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| Two of five police officers who are accused of murdering a suspect are brought to Nakhon Sawan Provincial Court in Thailand, Aug 26, 2021. (Photo by=AP/Surat Sappakun) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] BANGKOK: Thai authorities have launched a manhunt for two police officers suspected of being involved in torturing to death a man who had been arrested for drug offenses, police said on Thursday (Aug 26), after a video of the incident was shared online.
The video posted by lawyer Sittra Biabungkerd on his Facebook page showed what appeared to be a man being suffocated by a plastic bag placed over his head while he was pinned down by four men. Five police officers from Nakhon Sawan province have been detained, while a "round the clock" hunt was on for two others, deputy police spokesman Kissana Phathanacharoen said in a statement. Arrest warrants issued for the suspects include the charge of murder by torture.
Sittra, who runs a legal aid foundation, said he received the video clip from a lower-ranking officer who asked him to pass it to the national police chief, claiming it showed "superintendent Joe" of Nakhon Sawan police station trying to extort money from a drug dealer. An official police order identified "superintendent Joe" as police colonel Thitisan Uttanapol. Police raided his home in an upmarket residential estate in Bangkok on Wednesday and found 13 cars, media reported. Thailand's police are widely seen as one of the country's most corrupt institutions, an analyst said, and Prayut's government had pledged reforms.
