Former BBC president gets another 20 years

Krirkkiat ordered to pay over B3bn in fines

The former president of Bangkok Bank of Commerce, Krirkkiat Jalichandra, has been sentenced to a further 20 years in prison for embezzlement.

This latest conviction means Krirkkiat has been sentenced to a combined 130 years in prison for embezzlement involving the collapsed bank.

Krirkkiat Jalichandra, former president of thecollapsed Bangkok Bank of Commerce, arrives at the Criminal Court yesterday.

The Criminal Court yesterday also ordered him to pay more than 3 billion baht in fines.

The court ruled Krirkkiat had approved a billion baht loan to Profit Orange Co between Oct 6, 1994, and March 4, 1996, despite there being no guarantee the money would be repaid.

Profit Orange had registered capital of just 10,000 baht. It placed 19 land plots covering 462 rai in Sa Kaeo province as collateral but the land had no business potential as the plots were under high-voltage electricity lines.

Two defendants, American Standard Appraisal Co and its managing director Pairote Suengsilp, assessed the value of the land at 832 million baht, 10 times its actual value.

Krirkkiat was found guilty of violating the Bank of Thailand order requiring him to seek approval from the BBC board before approving any loan for more than 30 million baht.

He also failed to examine the repayment potential of the borrower despite a warning from the central bank.

The damage Krirkkiat caused the bank was estimated at 1.57 billion baht.

Yesterday the court sentenced him to 20 years and imposed a fine of 3.13 billion baht.

American Standard Appraisal was fined 2 billion baht, and Pairote sentenced to 10 years and ordered to pay a fine of 2 billion baht.

The court also ordered Krirkkiat, American Standard Appraisal and Pairote to return the 1.57 billion baht to BBC creditors.

Two other defendants, former BBC vice-president Ekachai Athikhomnantha and former BBC financial management and investment banking director Wanchai Thamthitiwat, were found not guilty of involvement in approving the loan. The prosecution did not allege they benefited from the loan.

Yesterday's ruling was the eighth embezzlement conviction for Krirkkiat.

The Bangkok South Criminal Court sentenced him to 30 years in jail and fined him 3.2 billion baht on three other loan-related embezzlement charges that caused BBC losses of 9 billion baht. The Criminal Court also sentenced him to an 80-year term in prison and fined him US$472 million and 4.3 billion baht, and demanded he repay BBC 767 million baht in connection with four other embezzlement cases.

Krirkkiat's combined fines amount to US$472 million and over 10 billion baht, and he has been ordered to repay 2.33 billion baht to BBC.

Krirkkiat was released yesterday on 4 million baht bail while Pairote was released on 2 million baht bail pending their appeals.