Amlo begins to seize Stark assets

The Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo) had seized a first lot of assets owned by scandal-hit Stark Corp, amounting to around 349 million baht in total. The announcement was made yesterday at a press conference led by Amlo deputy secretary-general Pol Maj Gen Ekkarat Limsangkat, and Department of Special Investigation (DSI) deputy director-general, Pol Maj Yuthana Praedam. Regarding the first 16 assets seized, Amlo spokesman Witthaya Nititham said that most were owned by shareholders and their secretaries, ranging from cash to digital assets. Another lot of assets uncovered by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was also seized. The investigation team set a 90-day time limit for the owners to report their assets. “Amlo is also planning to further investigate the accused for money laundering,” said Mr Witthaya. Regarding the case’s progress so far, Pol Maj Yuthana said that more than 160 witnesses have been questioned in this case. The investigation team has also accused 11 people involved with Stark Corp of bank account and statement falsification. The team is also planning to invite an auditor for more questioning and issue one more arrest warrant against one of Stark’s administrative figures. This person was assumed to have left the country, said Pol Maj Yuthana. He added that none of the assets seized belonged to Stark’s largest shareholder, Vonnarat Tangkaravakoon, who has acknowledged but denied charges laid against him earlier. Mr Witthaya added that Amlo was working with the DSI’s Transnational Cases Division on a case involving Stark Corp’s former chairman, Chanin Yensudchai, who had escaped a warrant earlier. They have submitted a petition on the transfer of his overseas assets to the state with the Civil Court, said Mr Witthaya. The case is expected to be wrapped up by the end of this month, according to Pol Maj Yuthana.