MCOT to review online lotto ad contract

PM’s Office Minister Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana has instructed executives of state-owned public broadcaster MCOT Plc to review its TV commercial advertising contract made with Kong Salak Plus, an online lottery platform.

Mr Thanakorn, acting in his capacity as a supervisor, said yesterday that he had a meeting with MCOT executives on Monday to review a TV advertising contract, including an airtime slot for Kong Salak Plus of Lottery Online Co.

The meeting was held after the

Department of Special Investigation (DSI) found anomalies in its financial transactions.

Mr Thanakorn said the contract must be reviewed thoroughly, or MCOT may revoke the contract to prevent a lawsuit.

In a Facebook post yesterday, former politician and massage parlour tycoon Chuvit Kamolvisit revealed that an expanded investigation of mule accounts of an online gambling network discovered links to 53 million baht in suspicious transactions paid to Panthawat Nakwisut, CEO of Kong Salak Plus.

The DSI also discovered a link between Mr Panthawat’s 39 routing transactions with shady Chinese business groups worth 1.09 billion baht in total.

Some traces of links were also found to the owners of major online gambling websites in the UK.

Kong Salak Plus’s head office was raided by police for alleged price gouging on Monday, Mr Chuvit added.

DSI director-general Triyarith Temahivong said the DSI is waiting for Mr Panthawat to submit transactionrelated documents in order to facilitate a thorough investigation by the end of this month.