Parents of former royal consort confess to lèse majesté allegations related to adultery

The parents of Srirasmi Suwadee, former royal consort to the Crown Prince, have confessed to lèse majesté allegations related to a case of adultery.

Abhiruj Suwadee, 72, and Wantanee Suwadee, 66, on Friday morning confessed to the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) Police to offences under Article 112 or the lèse majesté law and for filing a false police complaint and framing others, which led to a person serving a term in jail.

According to Pol Col Akkaradet Pimolsri, Acting Commander of the CSD, the police will file a custody request to the criminal court and submit the case to the prosecutors for further proceedings.

He also stated that the police will object to any bail request by the couple.

At a press briefing on Friday morning, the couple said they had no intention to commit crimes and that they are not connected to the alleged gang led by Lt Gen Pongpat Chayapan, a high-ranking police officer who falsely claimed the involvement of the monarchy in a casino. 

In early February, Sawita Maneechan, 31, a native of western Ratchaburi Province, filed a complaint against them. She said the alleged crimes committed by the couple took place in 2003, when she was 20 years old. She was falsely accused of committing adultery with Abhiruj. The accusation defamed the Suwadee family and her family. In revenge, Abhiruj allegedly filed a false complaint to a police officer, who is Sawita’s uncle and forced the officer to prosecute her. The charge led to Sawita being jailed for fraud for a year and six months. She added that the accusations led to her whole family suffering social stigma.

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