Thailand signs pact with Switzerland to share drug trafficker’s seized assets

Deputy Attorney General Jumpon Phansumrit on Friday signed a pact on behalf of the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), which agreed to share that amount of confiscated assets with the Thai government, an informed source said.

This was a historic agreement that could pave the way for similar pacts in the future with other countries where criminals deposited their gains earned from such crimes as drug trafficking, public embezzlement, corruption, and money laundering, the source said. The countries under the Thai authorities’ radar include Singapore, the United Kingdom, the United States, Ireland, and Luxembourg.

“The Office of the Attorney General is working with foreign countries to freeze and confiscate those assets involving several cases as per the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act. We expect all those assets to be returned to Thailand in the near future,” the source said.

An earlier investigation by the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) discovered that Wei Hsueh-kang, a Chinese-born business tycoon and drug trafficker based in Myanmar, had money earned from smuggling methamphetamine into Thailand deposited in Swiss banks.

AMLO asked the OAG to coordinate with the relevant Swiss authorities to help seize the assets as per the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act and an international asset-sharing scheme. The OAG requested assistance from Swiss public prosecutors to freeze Wei’s Swiss bank accounts.