The chief of Kannayao police district in Bangkok and two senior investigators in Nakhon Si Thammarat have been transferred pending investigation for allegedly being too friendly with rock singer Sek Loso, who faces firearms and drug charges.
The Kannayao chief, Pol Col Sing Singhadej, has been transferred pending a probe into a photo-session with the singer in an investigation room after Sek was charged with resisting arrest at his home in Bang Khen, Bangkok.
Pol Col Sing came under a barrage of criticism after a photo of him posing with the rocker and two other men, giving a thumbs-up, went viral.
A fact-finding panel has been set up to investigate Pol Col Sing and the photo-op. He was transferred to Metropolitan Police Division 2 pending the results, Thai media reported on Friday.
Sek, 43, whose real name is Seksan Sookpimay, was taken to Kannayao police station on Sunday and charged with resisting police when they went to his house to arrest him for firing shots into the air and ground in front of the statue of King Taksin the Great at Wat Khao Khun Phanom in Nakhon Si Thammarat on Dec 29.
He was also charged with unauthorised possession of a firearm and firing shots in a public area. The Nakhon Si Thammarat Court granted him bail on Wednesday.
The embattled rocker also faces a summons to report to Kannayao police on Jan 12 to acknowledge a charge of drug use after a urine sample tested positive for methamphetamine.
National police chief Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda issued an order on June 22 last year banning police from posing for photos with suspects or acting in a manner that suggested they were close to a suspect, saying it would erode public faith in the force.
In the photo of Sek and Pol Col Sing taken on Jan 1, the other two people were Pol Maj Gen Prasopchok Prommoon, who took the rocker for drug rehabilitation treatment in 2011, and Kritikhun Thaksinnukulwong, an executive of Grammy Entertainment. The star deeply repects the two men, the Facebook post said.
Pol Col Sing said that the photo was taken while they had come to see Sek after police interrogated him overnight on Sunday (Dec 31) and into Monday.
The two men had been counselling Sek to stay away from illegal drugs, he said.
He insisted that police had not given the rock star any special treatment.
Meanwhile, two senior police officers in Nakhon Si Thamarat have also been transferred pending an inquiry after photos of them attending a party with Sek were posted on Facebook and drew heavy criticism.
A panel has been set up to investigate the attendance of Pol Col Rangsan Sukkua, chief investigator at Nakhon Si Thammarat police office, and Pol Lt Col Theerachai Pumpichai, crime suppression chief at Muang police station, at a party hosted by Sek in the southern province.
The two officers were moved to the Nakhon Si Thammarat police operations centre pending the findings of the investigation.
