According to a senior anti-graft official’s statement on Friday, former Culture Minister Ittipol Khunpluem has offered to turn himself in to the authorities in order to combat a case of misconduct.
Niwatchai Kasemmongkol, the secretary-general of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), stated that he had discovered that Ittipol, who has been on the run for weeks, had contacted relevant authorities regarding his surrender. Ittipol has been trying to turn himself in.
Niwatchai stated, “But I do not know which state agency the former culture minister will give himself up to – whether it will be the court that issued his arrest warrant.” Niwatchai did not know which state agency the former culture minister would give himself up to.
The Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases issued a warrant for Ittipol’s arrest on September 5 after he disregarded a court summons to appear before the prosecutor the day before and failed to do so. The court summons had been issued the day before.
Ittipol is charged with desertion of duty under Article 157 of the Criminal Code for giving an illegal permit for the construction of a luxury condominium at the base of Phra Tamnak Mountain in Pattaya City in 2008. This allegedly took place in 2008, when Ittipol was serving as the mayor of Pattaya City.
On August 3, the Office of the Attorney General made the decision to press charges against Ittipol and nine others for their roles in the issuance of the permission. The Office of the Attorney General also instructed those individuals to report to the prosecutors on September 4.
Due to the possibility that Ittipol and his alleged co-conspirators would attempt to leave the country, the court issued arrest warrants for them when they failed to appear in court on the specified date.
According to allegations from the media, Ittipol took a flight from Bangkok to Cambodia on August 30, and two other main defendants in the case, Phichet Uthaiwatthananont and Witthaya Sirinworachai, departed the country on September 3. Ittipol was the first defendant to leave the country.
Ittipol served as the cultural minister from 2019 to 2023 and was a member of the previous administration under General Prayut Chan-o-cha. The 49-year-old man, who was born into a renowned political family in the province of Chonburi, had served as the mayor of Pattaya between the years of 2008 and 2016.
Because of the significant impact that his late father, Somchai, also known as “Kamnan Poh,” had in the eastern coastline province of Chonburi, the nickname “Godfather of Chonburi” was given to him after he passed away.
