PUBLISHED : 18 Aug 2023 at 04:00
Sansiri Plc has denied an accusation by whistleblower Chuvit Kamolvisit that the company used a housekeeper and three male security guards to hold proxy shares in a shell company set up to conceal the purchase of a 1.1-billion-baht plot of land in the Thong Lor area of Bangkok in 2016.
In the statement countering Mr Chuvit’s allegation, Sansiri also threatened legal action against anyone involved in what it described as a disinformation campaign that has damaged its reputation.
Mr Chuvit, meanwhile, submitted evidence yesterday to deputy national police chief Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn to support his accusation against Sansiri, and requested a probe.
Housekeeper Pinit Khamyot and the three security guards — Phiraphong Thanram, Somsak Matiyaphak and Yongyuth Praking — are not nominees or representatives of Sansiri or of any of its subsidiaries, the company said in the statement.
Pheu Thai’s prime ministerial candidate, Srettha Thavisin, formerly served as the CEO of Sansiri, which said it had purchased the Thong Lor land in 2016 from N&N Asset Co, which had acquired it in 2008, and Sansiri had never lent N&N Asset any money despite Mr Chuvit’s claims to the contrary.
Sansiri insisted its land-purchasing process conforms to legal requirements, with every step transparent and accountable.
“Sansiri follows well-established guidelines for land purchases, which include a multidimensional pre-purchase assessment,” the company said in the statement signed by Uthai Uthaisangsuk, Sansiri’s Chief Operating Officer.
The statement also dismissed as baseless any suggestion that Sansiri purchased the plot of land at an inflated price and should have only paid 565 million baht for it or 650,000 baht per square wah.
“No landowners in Thong Lor would sell at this price,” the statement added.
More importantly, Sansiri paid N&N Asset for the land in full upon acquiring ownership of the plot, which is now the location of the KHUN by YOO residential project, said Sansiri.
Meanwhile, Ms Pinit’s husband said his wife had never acted as a proxy to facilitate the concealment of any land purchase agreement. He declined to give his name.
The couple live in Chiang Yuen district of Maha Sarakham. The husband said Ms Pinit has already reported to local police to say she has not broken any law.
In Satuk district of Buri Ram, Mr Phiraphong’s former wife, Nun Thanram, 64, said she had broken up with him 17 years ago when he left her for another woman. He left her with a debt of 100,000 baht, which she is still paying off.
In Akat Amnuai district of Sakon Nakhon, Donsawan Uppathum, 67, the father-in-law of Mr Yongyuth, said his son quit his job and returned home five years ago. He said Mr Yongyuth had filed a police report stating he was not a shareholder of N&N Asset.
Mr Chuvit dismissed claims the identities of the four people may have been stolen and used in the transaction, which involved a thorough check by a commercial bank.