The Criminal Court has sentenced media mogul Sondhi Limthongkul to four months in prison without suspension on Tuesday for defaming former MP Thanakorn Nanti over allegations linking him to corruption in several energy-related projects.
The court also ordered the royalist and veteran protest leader to pay 2 million baht in damages, 20,000 baht in legal fees, and publish the ruling in seven newspapers at his own expense.
The case was heard at the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road in Bangkok, where Mr Thanakorn — a former MP of the now-defunct Thai Rak Thai (TRT) Party and former deputy secretary-general to the prime minister for political affairs — accused Sondhi, founder of Manager Media Group and host of Sondhi Talk, of making defamatory statements on June 30, July 2, Sept 1 and Sept 3 in 2023.
Sondhi, 78, had alleged Mr Thanakorn was involved in corruption tied to five cases: PTT’s oil palm plantation land purchases in Indonesia, the Krung Thai Bank-EARTH lending scandal, alleged oil stock fraud, alleged oil trading collusion and claims related to a proposal for PTT to acquire Stark Corporation shares.
The court ruled Sondhi’s statements were presented as factual assertions and would lead third parties to believe Mr Thanakorn had engaged in corruption. It rejected Sondhi’s defence that he was merely piecing together information for public understanding.
The court found him guilty of defamation by publication under Section 328 of the Criminal Code. Mr Thanakorn had sought 50 million baht in restitution.
