Reserve Senators Push DSI to Probe Vote-Buying Case in Parallel with Election Commission
Reserve senators pressed the Special Investigation Department to pursue vote-buying charges in parallel with the Election Commission's inquiry, rather than waiting for the electoral body to complete its investigation first.
On August 19, 2025, at 11:30 a.m. at the Special Investigation Department headquarters on Chaeng Watthana Road, Police Major General Kamrop Pannyakaew and a group of reserve senators, along with senate candidates, arrived to press for expedited processing of the vote-buying case to prosecutors. Police Colonel Voranan Srilum, director of the Consumer Protection Division and spokesman for the department, received their petition.
Kamrop revealed he came to follow up on the department's progress after learning that investigators had completed and filed charges against eight people linked to the vote-buying scheme. However, prosecutors returned the case for further investigation, and Justice Minister Ruthapon Naorat has repeatedly stated that the Special Investigation Department must wait for the Election Commission's inquiry panel to finish before proceeding—a position Kamrop and his group view as unnecessary, arguing the two investigations can proceed in parallel.
Police Colonel Voranan confirmed that investigators have been pressing forward throughout. The prosecutors' request for additional witness questioning has been completed. The case cannot proceed to prosecutors until the Election Commission's findings arrive to be attached to the file.
Today, the reserve senators' group also requested that investigators look into additional points to ensure fairness. The department will instruct officials to verify the facts involved. There is currently no set timeline, but if the Election Commission's findings arrive as expected by late August 2025, the investigators will compile all available evidence with those findings and submit the complete file to prosecutors for further action.
