17 Warrants Issued in Bangkok Fatal Building Collapse Case

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration announces the end of the mission to search for missing persons and remove debris from the State Audit Office building that collapsed due to the Mach 28 earthquake, on May 13, 2025.

BANGKOK — Thai Police have issued arrest warrants for 17 individuals in connection with the collapse of the State Audit Office (SAO) building in Bangkok, including prominent business figure Premchai Karnasuta, Chairman of Italian-Thai Development. Engineers, project supervisors, and the China Railway joint venture are also facing charges.

The suspects face prosecution both as individuals and as corporate entities for failing to comply with construction regulations resulting in fatalities.

The announcement came on May 15, the same day the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) officially declared an end to the disaster zone status and returned control of the site where the new SAO building collapsed on March 28.

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Police Major General Noppasin Poolsawat, Deputy Metropolitan Police Commander, in his capacity as Deputy Chief of the Investigation Team for the State Audit Office building collapse case, at Bang Sue Police Station, meeting with the investigation team before issuing arrest warrants for 17 individuals involved, on May 15, 2025.

Multiple Building Code Violations

After examining documentary evidence and witness testimonies, investigators discovered that the building design failed to comply with ministerial regulations and standards. The elevator shaft walls were positioned along the rear edge rather than the center of the building, causing the building’s torsion center to shift away from the structural center.

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When the building swayed during an earthquake, this misalignment caused the elevator shaft walls and supporting columns to collapse almost simultaneously, resulting in the entire structure rapidly falling in a vertical direction.

Tests on cement samples from the construction site revealed that the concrete strength did not meet the required KSC standard measurements. Additionally, some steel reinforcement bars recovered from the site did not conform to design specifications.

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Damage inside the collapsed State Audit Office building, which officials allowed media to survey and photograph on May 6, 2025. (KHAOSOD Photo/Surat Sappakhun)

Forensic examination also confirmed that the signature of Somkiat Chusangsri, a professional engineer whose name appeared on documents, had been forged. Handwriting analysis determined that the signature on the construction documents differed significantly from Somkiat’s authentic signature.

Suspects Categorized in Three Groups

Based on this evidence, the investigation team led by Police Major General Somkuan Phuengsap and Police Major General Noppasin Poolsawat has divided the suspects into three categories:

Group 1: Design Companies
This includes Forum Architect Co., Ltd. and Mainhart (Thailand), who contracted with the State Audit Office, with one authorized signatory and five structural engineers who signed the blueprints. A total of six suspects face charges in this group.

Group 2: Construction Supervision Companies
The PKW joint venture, which includes PN Synchronize Co., Ltd., KP Consultants and Management Co., Ltd., and W. and Associates Consultants Co., Ltd. Five individuals from these companies are facing charges.

Group 3: Construction Contractors
This group includes Italian-Thai Development PCL and China Railway No. 10 (Thailand) Co., Ltd., along with representatives of the ITD-CREC joint venture. Six individuals face charges in this group.

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An image of the State Audit Office building after structural completion before it collapsed following the Myanmar earthquake that sent tremors to Bangkok on March 28, 2025.
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Among the 17 suspects named in the warrants are 64-year-old Suchart Chutipaphakorn, director of Forum Architect Co., Ltd., 71-year-old Premchai Karnasuta, chairman of Italian-Thai Development, and 85-year-old engineer Pimol Charoenying. Despite previously claiming in interviews that he was not involved in design work, Charoenying’s signature appears on the collapsed SAO building construction plans.

The State Audit Office building was the only structure in Bangkok to collapse due to tremors from the Myanmar earthquake on March 28, resulting in numerous worker casualties. According to data from the Institute of Forensic Medicine at Police General Hospital, the death toll of those already identified stands at 92, with 4 people still missing and 9 injured.

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