BANGKOK: A 51-year-old French man who teaches at the Ministry of Education's (MOE) Language Centre has been arrested in Bangkok after being accused of buying sex with teenage boys, local media reported on Wednesday (Feb 6).

According to The Nation, the suspect was arrested in a hotel room in Soi Inthamara 47 near the Phaya Thai district on Monday.



He was alleged to have approached boys aged between 13 and 15 at the Huay Kwang Stadium, and asked them to have sex with him.

He was caught after a father complained that his teenage son had gone missing. The police tracked the missing boy to the hotel, where they found the suspect with two other boys aged 14.

At the hotel, police also found a computer with pornographic material, hard disks, cameras, a tripod, condoms, as well as packs of Kamagra oral jelly which is used to treat erectile dysfunction.

They also found a video of the suspect having sex with a teenage boy.



Responding to queries from Channel NewsAsia, MOE confirmed it was aware of the allegations surrounding one of its teachers, Jean-Christophe Quenot.

The ministry said it was "doing internal checks" and noted that Quenot, a teacher in the French department at the Language Centre, was part of an investigation by Thai authorities.

"MOE takes a serious view of misconduct by our staff and will not hesitate to take disciplinary action against those who do not adhere to our standards of conduct and discipline. In serious cases, their service may be terminated," it said.

A check by Channel NewsAsia showed that Quenot's name had been removed from the MOE Language Centre website shortly after the police announcement. He was previously listed under the French department.