The money trail in the fund embezzlement for the destitute scandal leads to several Level 10 and 11 officials at the ministry overseeing the welfare project, according to a Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) source.
Certain findings from the PACC investigation are consistent with those from a previous serious disciplinary probe carried out by a panel set up by the Social Development and Human Security Ministry, the same source revealed on Monday.
Additional and significant evidence found in the PACC probe included bank transactions made to close associates of these officials at the ministry, the same source said.
The transactions were made during a period very close to when the ministry conducted its annual reshuffle of high-level officials, said the source, adding that the PACC will look for more evidence before seeking criminal charges against these suspects.
When this is obtained, the PACC will call for Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to consider sacking these officials, while the ministry would be expected to take disciplinary and administrative action against the suspects, said the source.
PACC secretary-general Kornthip Daroj, meanwhile, said the commission would now focus its probe on how 123 million baht allocated in the 2017 fiscal year to the ministry's 76 provincial centres to help low-income earners and the destitute was spent.
So far, irregularities have been identified in budget spending in 53 provinces, which involved about 107 million baht, or about 87% of the entire budget paid to the centres, said Lt Col Kornthip.
Included among the 53 provinces where irregularities were found were all 20 in the Northeast, 17 of which face a formal probe designed to dig deeper into activities at their respective welfare centres.
At least 94 suspects have been identified in investigations that were either still being conducted or those wrapped up in the 17 provinces, he said.
The fraud came to light in Khon Kaen in January when a group of Maha Sarakham University students claimed the local centre chief and other senior officials ordered them to fill in forms and fake signatures on receipts for 2,000 villagers amounting to nearly 7 million baht.
They were working as interns at the Khon Kaen Protection for the Destitute Centre last year.
