A deputy director at a school was apprehended while accepting “tea money” from parents in exchange for enrolling their children mid-term, according to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).
The arrest followed a complaint received by the NACC from a parent, alleging that the deputy director of a school affiliated with Khon Kaen Primary Educational Service Area Office 1 in Muang district demanded an under-the-table payment of 20,000 baht for their child’s admission to the school.
The parents stated that due to their child’s ability to read and write, the price was reduced by half to 10,000 baht. The payment, they claimed, had to be in cash, and they were not informed of its purpose or usage.
In response, the NACC devised a plan to apprehend the school official using marked banknotes. Immediately after the transaction was completed, police and the NACC approached the suspect and charged him with wrongfully demanding, accepting, or agreeing to accept a bribe under Section 149 of the Criminal Code, and wrongfully exercising duties as a state official under Section 157.
Further investigation revealed information on his computer indicating involvement in other bribery cases with parents. Subsequently, the deputy school director was taken to Muang police station for legal proceedings.
Prateep Juthasorn, deputy secretary-general of NACC Region 4, stated that police would gather evidence within 30 days before submitting a summary to the NACC.
Initial findings indicated that about 70 students had been admitted mid-term to the school this academic year, with 60 students found to have paid “tea money.”
Mr. Prateep noted that most victims were coerced into retracting their statements, adding that the school has connections to a politician.
