Cops follow ‘Banpodj’ money trail
Police have asked the Anti-Money Laundering Office to examine the money trail of the anti-monarchy “Banpodj” network’s alleged leader, police spokesman Prawuth Thawornsiri said.
Police are expanding their investigation to identify the network’s financial supporters, Pol Lt Gen Prawuth said yesterday.
The move comes after the network’s alleged leader, identified as Hasadin Uraipraiwan, alias Banpodj, was arrested in a hotel room in Soi Soonvijai about 8pm on Monday and was later taken to the 11th Infantry Regiment for interrogation.
Technology Crime Suppression Division chief Siripong Timula said the arrest followed a police investigation that concluded Mr Hasadin, 64, had produced clips with lese majeste content and distributed them among members of his network.
Mr Hasadin had no permanent job. He monitored online news and used the information to make up stories, mostly about the political situation, to provoke hatred of the royal institution, Pol Maj Gen Siripong said.
A police source said the network has received at least 100,000 baht each month to support the production of clips with lese majeste content.
On Friday, police raided Mr Hasadin’s home on Soi Sukhumvit 101 and seized equipment used to produce the content.
During the raid, police say they found lese majeste content, including fabricated audio clips uploaded to a server for members to download. Officers also seized financial documents and pirated CDs offered for sale to raise funds for the network’s activities.
Two suspected members of the Banpodj network were arrested last week. Saifon Inthasorn allegedly opened bank accounts to receive funds for the group’s activities while Natee Pasomsap was allegedly hired to distribute content.
Meanwhile, the Military Court yesterday granted bail to Niran Yaowapa, a former webmaster for the ASTV news website. His lawyer submitted 400,000 baht as surety.
Mr Niran allegedly posted a forged Royal Household Bureau statement about His Majesty the King’s health on the website.