24-6-2024 (BANGKOK) Chanin Yensudchai, the former chief executive of the collapsed Stark Corp, was handed over to public prosecutors on Monday by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI). Yensudchai faces multiple charges, including falsifying financial statements, money laundering, and committing fraud, along with associated offenses.
The indictment follows Yensudchai’s interrogation by DSI officials on Sunday, shortly after he was extradited from Dubai, where he had been in hiding for the past eight months. Upon his arrival in Bangkok, he was formally informed of the charges being brought against him.
On Monday, DSI officials escorted Yensudchai to the Office of the Attorney-General for indictment. The DSI opposed his release on bail, citing concerns that the suspect had previously fled the country once the case against him came to light in 2023.
Yutthana Praedam, the DSI deputy director-general, revealed that Yensudchai denied all charges leveled against him. He further stated that Yensudchai was the last of 11 suspects, including individuals and companies, to be charged in connection with the Stark Corp scandal.
The accounting and embezzlement scandal at the SET-listed Stark Corp, a wire and cable manufacturing company, has been one of the country’s largest corporate frauds in recent years. The DSI accepted the financial misconduct case for investigation in June of the previous year, after external auditors uncovered discrepancies between the reported figures and the company’s actual financial performance.
Investigators later discovered that Stark executives had orchestrated a scheme to present a misleadingly positive financial outlook to investors and stakeholders. The DSI estimated that approximately 4,000 people were affected by the scandal, and the damages reached a staggering 14.7 billion baht (approximately $400 million).
No one sought temporary release for Yensudchai, and he was promptly transferred to the Bangkok Remand Prison for detention on Monday.
