Former Agricultural Officer Arrested For Flood Fraud Scheme
Former agricultural officer arrested for orchestrating a fraud scheme in which he certified false flooding claims for farmers to illegally obtain compensation from Thailand's rice farmer income protection program.
An arrest was made of a former agricultural officer who allegedly conspired with farmers to file false reports of rice field flooding in order to receive compensation under the farmer income guarantee program. On July 7, Phumiwisal Kaemsakul, secretary of the Anti-Corruption Commission, along with Narongwit Suwannsithi, director of the ACC's Region 6 office, ordered officers Somboorn Inthahtab and Awin Banjolard, along with investigator Wisut Saensamran, to arrest Sompon at his residence in Moo 6, Wang Bua subdistrict, Khlong Khlung district, in Kamphaengphet province, based on a court arrest warrant for fraud and corruption charges in Region 6. The suspect allegedly used his official position to convince multiple farmers to submit false statements and fabricated documents claiming they were rice field tenants eligible to receive aid from the rice farmer income protection program and had suffered damage from flooding. In his official role, the suspect accepted and certified false farmer registration documents and natural disaster relief program documents for 2010-2011, certifying that the farmers qualified to receive assistance. Although the suspect knew the certifications were fraudulent, he proceeded to collect money from the farmers. The suspect has been taken into custody and transferred to the Anti-Corruption Court for Region 6 for further legal proceedings.
