Nakhon Phanom police have lodged a complaint against two men involved in the attempt to seek a retrial for former teacher Jomsap Saenmuangkhot who was jailed in a hit-and-run case.
Suriya Nualcharoen and Sap Wapee face charges of filing a false report to police for their role in the case, Nakhon Phanom provincial police chief Suwicharn Yankittikul said.
Mr Suriya is Ms Jomsap's friend who helped seek the retrial while Mr Sap is a witness who claimed to be the actual driver in the March 2005 hit-and-run case against the former teacher.
Mr Suriya presented evidence to police to support a claim Ms Jomsap did not drive the car.
This took place after she was released from prison, before they sought help from the Justice Ministry.
Ms Jomsap was found guilty of recklessly driving a pickup truck that struck a bicycle, killing Lua Pobamrung, in Nakhon Phanom's Renu Nakhon district.
She was sentenced to three years and two months in prison by the Supreme Court in 2013. She was granted a royal pardon in 2015 and released.
Pol Maj Gen Suwicharn said the complaint against the pair has been lodged with three police stations, Na Don and Renu Nakhon in Renu Nakhon district and Muang police stations, all of which investigated the fatal accident.
The police action is based on the Supreme Court's ruling last Friday that said witnesses and evidence presented were neither new nor credible.
Police suspected a network was hiring out people to confess to crimes they did not commit in exchange for payment -- in this case to back Ms Jomsap's claims of wrongful conviction.
He said the inquiry panel set up to pursue legal action against the suspected network has found "irregularities" in the complaint lodged by Mr Suriya.
In his complaint lodged with Renu Nakhon station on Dec 23, 2013, Mr Suriya identified the driver as Prasert Roopsa-ard.
The complaint would be used as an official record in seeking the retrial.
However, Mr Suriya, showed up at Na Don police station on Nov 19, 2014, with Mr Sap, who told police he was the driver in the hit-and-run case, Pol Maj Gen Suwicharn said.
These irregularities and their testimonies given before the court during the hearings seeking the retrial will be used as evidence in the case, he said.
The provincial police chief said Mr Suriya would lead police to the network that provides a "hired scapegoat" network, and the inquiry team will expand its investigation.
"Any witnesses whose statements and testimonies are inconsistent will be investigated to determine if they lied. If they did, they will face legal action," he said.
The hearings to determine the retrial began in late 2016 after the Appeal Court Region 4 agreed to consider the matter. The matter was passed on to the Supreme Court for a decision.
On Friday, the Supreme Court rejected Ms Jomsap's petition on grounds that evidence and witnesses were neither new nor credible and noted that there was likely a network to provide "hired scapegoats" behind this.
