Appeals Court Overturns Ruling, Sentences 'Toto' to 3 Years Prison in Article 112 Case
An appeals court has overturned a lower court's dismissal and sentenced 'Toto' Piyarat Jongtep, a Prachathai MP, to three years in prison on lèse-majesté charges, though he was granted temporary release pending a Supreme Court appeal.
At 9:30 a.m. on May 20, 2025, Kalasin Provincial Court heard the appeals court verdict in the case of Piyarat Jongtep, known as 'Toto,' a Prachathai party MP and former WeVo activist, who was charged under Article 112 of the Criminal Code and Article 14(3) of the Computer Crime Act. The Appeals Court Region 4 reversed the lower court's decision and imposed a three-year prison sentence without suspension on the charge under Article 112.
According to a Facebook post by Piyarat, the lower court only examined prosecution witnesses and refused to hear defense witnesses despite the defendant's objections. The lower court subsequently dismissed the charges due to questionable credibility of the prosecution's evidence. Piyarat's legal team then filed a petition requesting bail and temporary release to continue fighting the case in the Supreme Court.
At noon, the court granted temporary release with a security deposit of 300,000 baht, with the condition that the defendant not leave the kingdom without court permission.
