Facebook user faces 32 years in prison for clicking 'Like'

A Samut Prakan man has been arrested for "liking" a doctored photo of HM the King and sharing an infographic on Facebook about the Rajabhakti Park scandal, the military said Thursday

Auto-parts factory worker Thanakorn Siripaiboon, 27, was arrested at his home in Samut Prakan province and charged with sedition, lese majeste and computer crimes, said Col Burin Thongprapai, legal officer for the National Council for Peace and Order.

"On December 2, he clicked 'Like' link on a doctored photo of the King and shared it with 608 friends," Col Burin told AFP, adding that he had confessed to the charges and faced up to 32 years in jail.

Under Thai law anyone convicted of insulting the King, Queen, heir or regent can face up to 15 years in jail on each count.

Mr Thanakorn, who belonged to an opposition red-shirt Facebook group, also shared an infographic about Rajabhakti Park, the billion-baht tourist attraction built by the army under construction contracts allegedly riddled with kickbacks and inflated costs.

"He admitted that he posted the infographic of Rajabhakti Park to incite members of the group," to oppose the military, Col Burin said.

Last month, a woman handed herself in to police and was charged with sedition for sharing the same Facebook infographic about the park scandal. Police said she was still under investigation.

Two prominent opposition figures and dozens of students were detained in separate incidents earlier this month while trying to visit the park and draw attention to the graft scandal.