Senior cops focused on traffic fines, not safety

Provincial Police Region 3 chief Pol Lt Gen Pisan Julladilok announces the abrupt transfer of the Nakhon Ratchasima police chief and the Muang district police chief onThursday. (Photo by Prasit Tangprasert)

The Nakhon Ratchasima police chief and the Muang police chief have been abruptly shunted to inactive posts for using checkpoints soley to collect traffic fines, which they get a share of, instead of ensuring public safety as ordered.

The two senior officers were transferred to the Police Provincial Region 3 head office.

Police Region 3 commander Pisan Julladilok said on Thursday that Nakhon Ratchasima police chief Thakul Nattheesri and Muang district police chief Pathiyut Singsomroj were found to have focused mainly on setting up police checkpoints to fine motorists and collect more money, which was contrary to his instructions.

It was Region 3 policy to concentrate on boosting public safety, not on collecting traffic fines, Pol Lt Gen Pisan said.

Nakhon Ratchasima police chief Pol Maj Gen Thakul Nattheesri is moved. (Photo by Prasit Tangprasert)

He had signed an order moving Pol Maj Gen Thakul and Pol Col Pathiyut to the Region 3 headquarters on March 11.

The two officers can no longer wield any authority over their respective offices, he said.

Pol Col Wanat Atthakawin, deputy Nakhon Ratchasima chief, had been appointed acting provincial chief and Pol Col Boonlert Wongwatjana, another deputy provincial chief, was made acting chief of Muang district police.

Pol Lt Gen Pisan said he had inspected police checkpoints in the province on the Ratchasima-Chokechai Road in Muang district on the night of March 10 and found several checkpoints were improperly set up.

There were no names displayed of officers in charge of the checkpoints and phone numbers for the public to contact the authorities were also not displayed, as they should be.

He found that the checkpoints failed to search suspicious vehicles for security purposes, and were mainly set up to catch traffic violators. The police get a share of the fines they impose.

He lashed out at such a practice, which he said was improper and not in line with police policy to boost public safety.

Muang district police Pol Col chief Pathiyut Singsomroj faces the same plight. (Photo by Prasit Tangprasert)



He said he earlier moved Pol Col Kampanart Thatujirankul, chief of Pak Thong Chai district police, to an inactive post at the Chaiyaphum provincial police office, and set up a panel to investigate him for failing to perform his duty.

The transfer came after he inspected the Pak Thong Chai station and found the chief was not in the office. He had contacted the officer over the phone and he claimed he was in Bangkok.

However, phone signal checks found the officer was in a neighbouring country at the time, not in Bangkok as he claimed, the regional police chief said.

An extended investigation also showed that the district police chief was a regular visitor to that country, ignoring his duty to serve the public. Worse still, the officer had used official time to visit that country, said Pol Lt Gen Pisan.