Businessman and former politician Chuvit Kamolvisit Tuesday gave a statement to the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) regarding Victoria's Secret Massage, a massage parlour which once belonged to him but subsequently became embroiled in alleged human trafficking and child prostitution.
Prosecutors say Mr Chuvit, who opened the parlour in 1989, is one of their main witnesses in a trafficking probe concerning the parlour, on Ratchadaphisek Road in Bangkok's Huai Khwang district, which police raided in January.
Supat Thamthanarug, director of the DSI's Bureau of Human Trafficking Crime, said the questions focused on a Myanmar girl under the age of 15 who was forced to work in the parlour.
Police believe the girl was trafficked through a border checkpoint in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai, to Bangkok where she was forced into prostitution before being transported to Malaysia for similar work.
Pol Lt Col Supat said he was unable to reveals details of the interviews with Mr Chuvit as that might affect the investigation.
"The DSI is confident the case will not go cold. The department is coordinating with other agencies, in particular the Anti-Money Laundering Office over the seizure of assets from those involved with the parlour," he said.
Earlier, Mr Chuvit, a former massage parlour mogul-cum-TV host, visited police to clear up doubts about his stake in the business. Mr Chuvit said he sold Victoria's Secret Massage in 2008 to Kampol Wirathepsuporn, the present proprietor, who remains at large.
Mr Chuvit reportedly told the DSI he had suspicions that the parlour had become part of a criminal syndicate which targeted girls aged between 12 and 18.
His statement came after the high-end "soapy massage" parlour in the Rama IX area was raided in January. More than 80 women found there are believed to have been forced into prostitution.
Authorities widened the investigation and later discovered that 20 state officials, including senior police, may be implicated after allegedly incriminating documents were found inside the premises.
Also Tuesday, DSI chief Paisit Wongmuang said he has instructed Pol Lt Col Supat to speed up the probe into trafficking. The DSI, he said, had gathered enough evidence to wrap up the case against Boonsap Amornratanasiri, 55, aka "Pa Kob", the massage parlour's director.
Mr Boonsap, who was arrested during the raid, is being detained after the Criminal Court denied him bail.
