Police Chief Ek Angsananon, expert member of the Police Commission He affirmed that the police acted within their authority regarding the case in which Big Joke assigned a lawyer to file a complaint under Section 157 against the gold bribery case investigative team, stating it is premature to conclude guilt or innocence and that the court’s ruling must be awaited to establish a precedent.
On 22 Jan 2026 GMT+7, Police Chief Ek Angsananon, expert member of the Police Commission, spoke about the case where Big Joke, former Deputy National Police Chief Pol. Gen. Surachet Hakpal, assigned a lawyer to file charges against Pol. Maj. Gen. Jaroonkiat Pangkaew, Deputy Commander of the Central Investigation Bureau, Pol. Maj. Gen. Prasong Chalapan, Commander of the Anti-Corruption Division, and the investigative team in the gold bribery case at the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Offenses. They were accused under Section 157 of being officials who performed or omitted their duties improperly, causing damage. Ek said the police received the complaint within their authority and followed procedures, gathering evidence and forwarding it to the NACC for consideration. However, because the case implicated NACC commissioners, the NACC returned the case file to the police, who must now proceed by proposing that the Supreme Court President appoint a special inquiry committee.
Regarding the lawyer’s view that investigators lack authority and that the matter should have been submitted to Parliament via the NACC from the start, Police Chief Ek said that this opinion is their right, as there has been no prior guideline for handling such cases. Fundamentally, the investigators acted according to their duties. If it is concluded that the police’s initial actions were incorrect, there could be disputes. Ultimately, the final resolution must be awaited.
Regarding the case where former National Police Chief Pol. Gen. San Sarutanon issued procedural orders in 2002 as evidence in today’s court filing, arguing that criminal proceedings against NACC commissioners cannot be initiated and must be referred to Parliament under constitutional authority, Police Chief Ek said this must be proven going forward. It is not possible to say which opinion is correct or incorrect now. The decision of the competent authority must be awaited to set a precedent.
When asked if police can proceed with investigations against individuals who are not NACC commissioners after the NACC returned the case file, Police Chief Ek said there has never been a case separating investigations this way. Now that the NACC has returned the entire file, it is understood that the case may need to be combined and forwarded to the Supreme Court President’s special inquiry committee to investigate all accused persons, as the police likely no longer have authority to investigate.
Police Chief Ek said that the lawyer for Pol. Gen. Surachet filing a complaint at the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Offenses is their right, and it is up to the court whether to accept it. However, there is no previous or comparable case to reference. The court’s ruling must be awaited to resolve the matter. It is not appropriate to hastily conclude or favor either side based on unsubstantiated claims.