NACC arrests former Khok Sa-at SAO official for community fund embezzlement
The Office of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) Region 4 and the NACC Kalasin Office, in cooperation with police officers from Khong Chai Police Station, arrested a former secretary to the mayor of Khok Sa-at Subdistrict Administrative Organisation for forging documents and embezzling funds from a community economic development project.
On September 8, 2025, under the direction of Mr. Saroj Phungramphan, Secretary-General of the NACC, Mr. Prateep Juthasorn, Deputy Secretary-General of the NACC Region 4, and Acting Lieutenant Colonel Somboon Hasadom, Director of the NACC Kalasin Provincial Office, the NACC anti-corruption investigation units coordinated with police officers from Khong Chai Police Station, Kalasin Province, to arrest Mr. Sawang (last name withheld), a former secretary to the mayor of Khok Sa-at Subdistrict Administrative Organisation, Khong Chai District, Kalasin Province, under an arrest warrant issued by the Kalasin Provincial Court.
Mr. Sawang is charged with aiding public officials in misappropriating assets for themselves or others fraudulently, or fraudulently allowing others to take those assets, causing damage to the state, municipality, sanitary district, or the asset owner, under Sections 147, 151, and 86 of the Criminal Code. He was apprehended in Khok Sa-at Subdistrict.
Following the resolution passed in July 2009 by the Sub-district Fund Management Committee, vocational groups in Khok Sa-at Sub-district were granted loans from the Community Economic Fund, including the Khok Sa-at Village No. 2 mattress and pillow sewing group, totaling 100,000 baht.
Subsequently, the assistant finance officer and assistant community development officer prepared the project documents for the Khok Sa-at sewing group, compiled the documents, and submitted them for review and disbursement. Mr. Boonsong (last name withheld), Head of the Sub-district Administrative Organisation's Secretariat, who was responsible for the project, in accordance with the Ministry of Interior's regulations on community economic projects, B.E. 2541 (1998) then certified that the funds had been disbursed to the members of the Khok Sa-at sewing group, and Mr. Boonthan (last name withheld), the Sub-district Administrative Organisation Mayor, approved the loan outside the budget.
In addition, Mr. Boonthan as Sub-district Administrative Organization Mayor, Ms. Punyanuch (last name withheld), the Sub-district Administrative Organization Secretary, and Mr. Boonsong as Head of the Sub-district Administrative Organization's Secretariat, jointly signed checks to the sewing group, even though they knew full well that the members of the group had never signed any loan agreements for the community economic project, and that the signatures on the loan agreements and other documents were not those of the members of the sewing group, and that they were unaware of their membership in the group.
On July 28, 2009, Mr. Sawang (last name withheld), secretary to the mayor of Khok Sa-at Subdistrict Administrative Organisation, and Mrs. Amporn (last name withheld), wife of Mr. Boonthan, the mayor, requested and brought three outsiders, whose names were on loan agreements as members of the sewing group, to open a group bank account at the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives, Kamalasai Branch. Subsequently, Mr. Sawang allowed these three individuals to deposit checks and withdraw money from the bank account.
However, Mr. Sawang received the money from the bank and used it for his own benefit and that of his associates. It was not used for the community economic development project of the mattress and pillow sewing group, and the members received no money whatsoever.
Furthermore, between July 28, 2009, and September 28, 2017, the Khok Sa-at Subdistrict Administrative Organisation never supervised, monitored, inspected, evaluated, or reported the results of the use of subdistrict-level funds to the Khong Chai District Development Committee. It also never expedited the debt collection or took legal action against occupational groups or farmer groups that defaulted on their loan agreements. And the group that sews mattresses and pillows has never kept any records of their income and expenses.
When the arresting officers arrived at Village No. 2, Khok Sa-at Subdistrict, they inquired with informants and learned that Mr. Sawang was residing in the rice fields. They followed this information and found Mr. Sawang walking on a public road. The officers identified themselves, showed him the arrest warrant issued by the Kalasin Provincial Court, and read it to him. Mr. Sawang admitted that he was the person named in the warrant and stated that he had never been arrested under this warrant before. The officers then arrested him, informed him of the charges and his rights, and took him to Khong Chai Police Station to record the arrest before transferring him to the Anti-Corruption Division Region 4 for further proceedings.
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The suspect or defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty by the court’s final judgment.
