The prosecutor has postponed the ruling on "Big Joke" accused of assaulting his subordinate, Police Lieutenant Colonel Kris, because the review of "Big Joke's" petition for fairness is not yet complete. The next ruling hearing is scheduled for 24 July.
At the Special Prosecutor's Office for District Court Cases 1, Building A, Chaeng Watthana Government Complex, at 11:00 a.m. on 22 May, the special prosecutor summoned Police General Surachate Hakparn, former Deputy Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police, to hear the ruling in the case filed by Police Lieutenant Colonel Kris Pariyaket, a former close subordinate. The charge is assault causing bodily or mental harm under Criminal Code Section 295. Police General Surachate arrived with his personal lawyer, Mr. Sanyaphat Samart.
In this case, Police Lieutenant Colonel Kris alleges that on 20 February 2017, Police General Surachate struck his left ear violently with his right hand 4-5 times consecutively. On 23 February 2017, he began experiencing severe ear and head pain and sought treatment at Bangkok Hospital, where doctors diagnosed a medium-sized perforation of the left eardrum caused by the assault.
For today's meeting with the prosecutor, Police General Surachate wore a blue suit and appeared in good spirits. He signed documents with the prosecutor and left without granting any interviews, stating only that inquiries should be directed to his lawyer.
Mr. Sanyaphat stated that after the investigators submitted the case file to the prosecutor, he filed a petition for fairness at the prosecutorial level. Today, the prosecutor has not completed the review and has postponed the ruling to 10:00 a.m. on 24 July. This does not mean that Police General Surachate requested a delay or is stalling; it is a procedural step. They will proceed within the legal framework to ensure fairness for their client. The prosecutor holds the authority to consider the petition, which concerns details within the case file. The incident allegedly occurred in 2017, nine years ago, and they have continued to work together since, which raises questions and grounds for the petition, particularly regarding forensic evidence.
Regarding Police General Surachate's countersuit against Police Lieutenant Colonel Kris for filing a false complaint, the court is waiting for the assault case to be resolved first before proceeding to consider the false complaint case.