Thai police colonel surrenders in suspect’s death

BANGKOK — A Thai police colonel known as “Jo Ferrari” because of his collection of fine cars, who was wanted on suspicion of involvement in the death of a detained drug dealer who allegedly was being shaken down for cash, turned himself in Thursday after a nationwide manhunt.

Police officials said Col. Thitisan Utthanaphon surrendered at a police station in Saen Suk, a coastal village southeast of Bangkok. Another suspect, Lt. Thoranin Matwanna, was apprehended in a town southwest of the capital.

“I apologize that this has happened,” National Police Chief Suwat Janyodsuk said at a news conference late Thursday. “We never release anyone who did wrong without punishment.”

He said little more about the case, but he gave Thitisan a chance to address reporters by telephone and answer questions.

Thitisan defended his actions, denying any part in a shakedown and insisting he was trying to get information from the drug dealer about where he had stashed his main supply of methamphetamine.

“Since I’ve been in the police I have never been involved in corruption,” the colonel said. “I did not have any intention to kill him. I just wanted to do my work.”

Thai media have reported that Thitisan has 29 luxury automobiles worth more than $3 million, some of which he kept at a home in Bangkok worth about $1.8 million.

Police on Thursday didn’t immediately say what charges Thitisan is being held on.

Earlier in the day, five other suspects, including a major and a captain, were brought before a judge who ordered them held without bail on charges of dereliction of duty, torture and murder.

Thitisan, who was chief of the station in Nakhon Sawan province, disappeared shortly before a video surfaced on social media that appears to show him directing the deadly assault on the suspect.

Police started investigating the case only after a well-known lawyer, Decha Kittiwittayanan, published an account of it on his Facebook page Sunday.

Decha said he had received a complaint from a junior policeman in Nakhon Sawan who said police had arrested two drug suspects, the 24-year-old man and his female companion, with more than 100,000 methamphetamine tablets.

The policemen first demanded $30,560 from the suspects, which they agreed to pay for their release, according to the account. But then Thitisan demanded double that amount and ordered his subordinates to cover the male suspect’s head with a plastic bag and beat him until he agreed, said the junior policeman, whose name wasn’t revealed.

When the suspect died, Thitisan allegedly ordered his men to take the body to the hospital and tell the doctor the death was caused by a drug overdose. The junior policeman said the woman was released but told not to say anything about it.