National police chief Pol Gen Suwat Jangyodsuk has ordered a probe into opposition claims during last week’s censure debate that a police colonel and a police lieutenant general were involved in the smuggling attempt of 1.5 tonnes of crystal methamphetamine in Tak that was foiled on Oct 18, 2019, a source said yesterday.
Pol Gen Suwat assigned deputy national police chief Pol Gen Manu Mekmok in his capacity as chief of the National Command Centre for Combating Drugs (NCCD) and Pol Lt Gen Montri Yimyaem, chief of the Narcotics Suppression Bureau (NSB), to jointly lead the probe, the source said.
They are required to come up with findings by the end of this week, the source said.
Previously, police spokesman Pol Maj Gen Yingyos Thepchamnong responded to information made public during the censure debate about the alleged involvement by police officials in the drug smuggling operation.
Pol Maj Gen Yingyos said although it was difficult to prove the involvement of the officials, police “would try their best” to establish what had happened.
Last Wednesday, Pol Lt Gen Torsak Sukwimol, commissioner of the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), assigned Pol Lt Col Ekkasit To-adithep, a member of the bureau’s working group on special crime suppression, to file a defamation charge with the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) against the administrator of a Facebook page called Sanap Sanun Patibatkan Tamruat (“We support police operations”).
Pol Lt Col Ekkasit said the Facebook page published details and a photo of Pol Lt Gen Torsak in a manner that misled the public about Pol Lt Gen Torsak’s alleged role in the 2019 drug case.
Provincial Police Region 6 had already investigated Pol Lt Gen Torsak’s alleged involvement in the case and at the time he was cleared of any wrongdoings.
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