Woman blows whistle on Health Ministry molester

Video taken by a hidden camera installed in a Public Health Ministry office in Nonthaburi shows a supervisor groping a female staff member. (Photo from Amarin TV)

NONTHABURI: An employee of the Public Health Ministry has accused her boss of molesting her by stroking her breasts and threatening not to renew her work contract if she resisted.

The 30-year-old employee, hired on a year-to-year contract at a unit under the permanent secretary’s office, on Saturday filed a complaint with police at Muang district police station in Nonthaburi.

The woman, identified only as Ae, also gave officers a video clip that showed her being molested.

She said her direct superior had been molesting her since 2014 and the abuse had become worse, to the point where she could no longer stand it. The man had threatened not to renew her employment contract if she resisted, Thai media reported on Saturday.

In the most recent incident, her boss grabbed her in a headlock and stroked her breasts in full view of her colleagues. Nobody dared help her because the man had power, said the woman. She admitted she was afraid of the man, who is married with no children.

She lodged a complaint with her office about what he had done to her, but his conduct did not change. She then sought help from some colleagues to secretly install a camera in his office. He was not aware of the camera, which captured him groping her.

Amarin TV broadcast the video, which has been uploaded to YouTube on Friday and had received more than 250,000 views as of Saturday evening.

Media reports quoted Sophon Mekthon, the ministry's permanent secretary, as saying he had signed an order to transfer the accused official and had set up a fact-finding committee to look into the incidents.

“I decide to file the complaint as I am afraid for my safety," the woman told Matichon Online. "I also want society to know that a male employer should not act like this against a female employee who cannot fight back.

"Outsiders may think that sexual molestation is consensual. In fact, it is not and his action has tarnished my dignity."

Pol Lt Col Wachiranusorn Khamphaeng, investigation chief at the Muang district police station, said officers had interviewed the woman's colleagues and viewed the video. He said a warrant would be issued to summon the accused employer for questioning. If he fails to show up, an arrest warrant would be issued, he added.