Ruttaphon has left it to the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) to decide whether to change the head of the Senate election rigging case after substitute senators requested the replacement of Piya, awaiting a central ruling from the Election Commission before moving forward with further actions.
At 12:00 on 4 Nov 2026 GMT+7, Pol. Lt. Gen. Ruttaphon Naowarat, Minister of Justice, spoke about the progress of Special Case No. 24/2568 involving a nationwide Senate election rigging and money laundering network. Recently, substitute senators submitted a letter requesting that the Department of Special Investigation bring this investigation to the Special Case Committee meeting to prevent Pol. Lt. Col. Piya Raksakul, the current Director-General of the DSI, from leading the investigative team. This aims to ensure fairness in the investigation without interfering in the case.
Pol. Lt. Gen. Ruttaphon said the matter would likely be brought to the Special Case Committee board, but the DSI should decide internally regarding the investigative team. Whether Pol. Lt. Col. Piya Raksakul will no longer lead the Senate election rigging and money laundering investigation is an internal DSI matter. He does not know the details deeply enough to say if the investigative team will be changed and suggested inquiries be directed to the DSI.
When asked if there is a policy to re-examine the Senate election rigging and money laundering case due to past allegations that investigators may have intimidated witnesses or mishandled evidence, Pol. Lt. Gen. Ruttaphon said the decision depends mainly on the Election Commission’s ruling. Once the Election Commission issues its central ruling and submits matters to the Supreme Court, the DSI will proceed with relevant actions accordingly.
Asked whether the DSI would consider increasing the number of suspects in the election rigging and money laundering case beyond the original eight senators already charged, the Minister of Justice confirmed that details should be explained by the DSI Director-General. He stated that they have not yet received the Election Commission's central ruling details and emphasized that they must await the official ruling before proceeding.