The family of a drink-driving offender who died in Si Sa Ket Prison has called on the Justice Ministry to investigate his death, saying they were not convinced he died from a fall in a washroom.
Surin Kethom, mother of Prompanya Kethom, lodged a petition with the ministry on Wednesday, seeking seek justice for her son.
Prompanya, 40, was put behind bars because his family could not afford to pay a fine of 6,000 baht after the Si Sa Ket provincial court found him guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol. He was caught during the Songkran festival road safety campaign on April 14.
Lawyer Ronnarong Kaewphet, who accompanied Mrs Surin, said the family asked for help and justice from the ministry in four ways.
They wanted the ministry to set up a central committee to look into Prompanya’s death, take action against prison officials at all levels who were found involved in the death, provide financial assistance for the family as they believed he was a crime victim, and to set aside funding for the family to fight the case.
The family suspected Prompanya was physically assaulted while in detention. They were not convinced by prison officials’ claims he died of injuries from a fall after going to sleep while sitting on the edge of a bathtub.
Thai media reported Prompanya was found with bruises all over his body.
Corrections department chief Naras Savestanan went to Si Sa Ket to look into the case at the provincial prison on Sunday.
He later ordered the transfer of prison chief Somboon Puttachart and other officials pending a probe into the case.
Lawyer Ronnarong said there were other cases of drink-driving offenders dying while held in prison during the Songkran festival. Offenders who were unable to pay their fines were sent to prison, and some ended up losing their lives while behind bars.
Mr Ronnarong called on prison officials to take care of inmates on par with international standards.
Relatives of Prompanya raised doubts about his death after they were not shown any security camera footage showing what happened on that day, he said.
Mrs Surin said her son had no bruises on his body before he was detained during Songkran. When prison officials informed the family Prompanya had been admitted to hospital with swelling of the brain, she and other family members went to see him. They saw bruises on his body and his swollen face.
There were no injuries that would have been caused by a fall from a bathtub, she said.
