The DSI Director-General explained that approval of the arrest warrant for "Phawat" is at the court's discretion, after "Sirikan" claimed that society questioned whether the action was excessive.
On 22 July 2026, during a special committee meeting to consider the 2027 fiscal year budget bill, Ms. Sirikan Tansakul, Deputy Leader of the People’s Party, questioned the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) about the Forex case procedures involving the disclosure of Mr. Phawat Pongwitthayaphanu’s name and the advance request for an arrest warrant. She noted that although DSI has performed well on many issues, this case has raised public doubts—specifically about revealing a suspect’s name before they were officially charged, while two other well-known individuals involved were not mentioned. Additionally, the announcement about the arrest warrant request was later overturned by the court, which issued a summons instead. She asked about the criteria used to decide whether requesting an arrest warrant for someone without flight risk constitutes an excessive action.
Police Colonel Yutthana Praedam, Director-General of the Department of Special Investigation, responded that combating technology crimes is a key government policy that requires ongoing enforcement. Public disclosure aims to deter further victims from being deceived. On that day, the media had already revealed Mr. Phawat’s name, so investigators needed to clarify his level of involvement. He emphasized that at that time, Mr. Phawat was not yet a suspect and was fully allowed to provide explanations. Although he did so, his reasons were not accepted, so investigators proceeded to request an arrest warrant based on the evidence.
“When there is reasonable evidence of wrongdoing, investigators may summon the person for charges or petition the court to approve an arrest warrant. This is entirely at the court’s discretion, which weighs the necessity of detention. This means that even if investigators have evidence, the court may still deny the warrant,” said Police Colonel Yutthana.