Land officials revoke rights for island plot
Phuket land officials yesterday decided to revoke land rights documents for a section of land on Naka Noi Island in the resort province.
Watcharin Jettanawanit, a provincial land official, yesterday said an investigation panel resolved to rescind the Nor Sor 3 Kor land rights documents for 24 rai of land on the island owned by Phu Khao Hok Look Co Ltd, or Six Mountains.
Nor Sor 3 Kor are documents which guarantee land rights and can later be converted into land deeds.
The panel’s decision came after actor Puri Hiranprueck and his family filed petitions with the Interior Ministry’s Damrongtham Centre and Phuket City Hall, calling on authorities to look into Six Mountains’ land ownership documents as they believed they could have been issued illegally.
According to the petition, the estate agents once offered the actor’s family the remaining forest land on Koh Naka Noi. However, his family rejected the offer as it was impossible for ownership documents to be issued for the forest land.
The estate agents, however, eventually managed to sell 24 rai of land to Six Mountains, which later claimed it was worth 42 million baht.
Mr Watcharin said the office has forwarded the decision to the Department of Land (DOL). The authority to revoke the document belongs to DOL director-general Apinan Suethanuwong.
The director-general will review the panel’s decision on whether the land rights documents should be revoked. If so, the department will inform the company it can appeal within 15 days.
The appeal will be considered by the interior deputy permanent secretary who has the authority to overrule the DOL director-general’s decision.
“The probe into land plots on Koh Naka Noi is conducted based on the petitions lodged with the Interior Ministry and Phuket City Hall by the Hiranprueck family,” Mr Watcharin said.
Mr Watcharin added that a probe into ownership documents for 53 rai of land on the island owned by the actor’s family was being conducted simultaneously after a petition by Six Mountains.