Panthongtae "Oak" Shinawatra's lawyer has called on the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) not to press money laundering charges in connection with the Krungthai Bank (KTB) loan scandal against him.
Chumsai Sriyaphai presented a letter to the DSI Thursday, "seeking justice" for Mr Panthongtae, son of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Pol Maj Woranan Srilum, chief of DSI's Special Case Management Centre, accepted the letter.
The move comes in response to the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo) recently lodging a complaint with the DSI accusing Thaksin's son and others of money laundering for receiving cheques tied to the loans, Mr Chumsai said.
The DSI is looking into the money laundering aspect of the KTB loan scandal and one of the suspects is Mr Panthongtae.
The money-laundering investigation, being spearheaded by the DSI, focuses on Mr Panthongtae and three other people who allegedly received part of a 9.9 billion baht fraudulent KTB loan.
Receiving assets from a corrupt scheme forms the basis of money laundering under Thai law.
The other three suspects are Kanchanapha Honghern, a former secretary of Thaksin's ex-wife, Khunying Potjaman na Pombejra; Wanchai Honghern, the husband of Ms Kanchanapha; and Kesinee Jipiphop, Ms Kanchanapha's mother.
The scandal involves 9.9 billion baht of loans made to subsidiaries of the Krisdamahanakorn (KMN) real estate company during Thaksin's administration.
In 2015 the Supreme Court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions found 24 people guilty of wrongfully approving the loans to affiliates of developer KMN from 2003 to 2004.
The loans were granted even though the firm was listed with the bank as a non-performing debtor. Former prime minister Thaksin, named as the first defendant, fled before the trial started in 2012.
The DSI said it found evidence showing Mr Panthongtae and the three others were recipients of two cheques tied to the loan.
One was for 10 million baht, cashed into Mr Panthongtae's bank account, and another for 26 million baht linked to the other three figures.
Mr Chumsai insisted that Mr Panthongtae did not know the 10-million-baht cheque he received from Wichai Krisdathanon, the owner of KMN, was part of the money from the KTB loan, and that he had no intention of hiding or concealing the money he received.
Wichai was among the 24 people convicted and was sentenced to 12 years.
The court also ordered KMN, Wichai and his son Ratchada Krisdathanon, an executive of KMN, who was also sentenced to 12 years, pay 10 billion baht back to Krung Thai Bank. The cheque Mr Panthongtae received from Wichai was a normal business transaction, the lawyer said.
In light of this, Mr Panthongtae's conduct does not constitute a breach of the Anti-money Laundering Act, he said.
"I am sure Mr Panthongtae was not involved in money laundering and had nothing to do with KMN," Mr Chumsai said.
There were also about 150 others who received money in a similar manner as Mr Panthongtae but only he and his associates are being singled out, Mr Chumsai said.
