CRASH SCION
Red Bull heir’s post-tragedy high life
BANGKOK (AP) — The Ferrari driver who allegedly slammed into motorcycle cop here, dragging him along the road and then sped away from the mangled body took just hours to find, as investigators followed a drip, drip, drip trail of brake fluid up a street, down an alley, and into the gated estate of one of the country’s richest families.
The prosecution of Red Bull heir Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya, however, has been delayed for close to five years.
Within weeks of the accident, The Associated Press has found, Vorayuth, then 27, was back to enjoying his family’s jet-set life, largely associated with the Red Bull brand, an energy drink company cofounded by his grandfather. He flies around the world on private Red Bull jets, cheers its Formula One racing team from Red Bull’s VIP seats and keeps a black Porsche Carrera in London with custom license plates: B055 RBR (Boss Red Bull Racing).
Critics say the inertia in the Red Bull heir’s case is just another example of longstanding privilege for the wealthy class in Thailand, a politically tumultuous country that has long struggled with rule of law.
The Yoovidhya family lawyer did not respond to AP’s request to interview Vorayuth.
“There is most certainly a culture of impunity here that big people, which means roughly people with power and money, expect to be able to get away with a certain amount of wrongdoing,” said British historian Chris Baker, who with his Thai wife, Pasuk Phongpaichit, has written extensively about inequality, wealth and power in Thailand.
Vorayuth has been summoned by prosecutors for a meeting on Thursday. He has skipped out on several past appointments.
The cop, Sgt. Maj. Wichean Glanprasert, came from a rural area and didn’t have many opportunities. The youngest of five, he was the first in the family to leave its coconut and palm farm for the city, the first to get a government job and to graduate from college. He had no children, but planned to put his brother’s kids through college.
The policeman’s family painfully grieved after the Sept. 3, 2012, accident, but they figured at least there would be justice. Wichean was a police officer, after all. Certainly the criminal justice system would hold his killer responsible.
Over days and months, the case unfolded. The Yoovidhya family lawyer said Vorayuth left the scene not to flee, but because he was going home to tell his father. As for blood tests showing Vorayuth was well over the legal alcohol limit, his lawyer said his client was rattled by the crash and so drank “to relieve his tenseness.”
Police said Vorayuth admitted he was driving, but not recklessly — the officer swerved in front of him, he said.
Prayuth Petchkhun, a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office, said the case is under review because extra investigation was needed. He would not specify what that extra investigation involved.
While Vorayuth’s case has been on hold, his carefree, expensive life has not.
More than 120 photos posted on Facebook and Instagram since then, as well as some racing blogs, show Vorayuth visited at least nine countries since the officer’s death. Stops include the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Osaka, where he posed wearing robes from Hogwarts School’s darkest dorm, Slytherin House. He’s cruised Monaco’s harbor, snowboarded Japan’s fresh powder and celebrated his birthday at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in London.
His lifestyle — soaking in an Abu Dhabi pool and dining in Nice, France — is supported by his family’s billions.
Red Bull sold more than 6 billion of its iconic slim cans in 2016 in more than 170 countries.
Red Bull reported more than $6 billion in sales last year.
Forbes estimates Vorayuth’s dad, Chalerm, has a net worth of $9.7 billion.
Last month on Instagram, a friend posted a group shot, guys taking a snowboarding break in the sunshine at Japan’s majestic Annapuri ski resort.
“ran into little bull @bossrbr lets catch up tonite dude,” says one friend.
“Snow snow snow” chimes in another.
And then Bossrbr: “Wof wof.”