(11 March) The Supreme Court has dropped the case of a policeman who allegedly sexually harassed an underage rape victim, stating that the defendant and the victims have come to mutual agreement.
The lawsuit was brought by the parents of the victim against Pol.Maj. Sawai Lorblad, who was a police officer at Makkasan Police Station at the time of the alleged incident.
According to the complaint filed by the plaintiff, the victim went to the police station on 23 February 2005 to give her testimony over a separate incident, in which she was allegedly sexually assaulted by a neighbour.
During the interrogation, the plaintiff claimed, Pol.Maj. Sawai took the victim to a toilet at the police station with the pretext of looking for evidences of the rape on her body, and proceeded to molest her.
The officer had been charged with sexual abuse of a minor and abduction of a person younger than 18 but older than 15 with intent of sexual abuse.
Pol.Maj. Sawai contested the charges, and he was acquitted by both lower courts, which cited the victim's confusing and contradictory testimonies to the court.
Today the Supreme Court also announced its decision to drop the case, stating that the victim and the defendant have "come to mutual agreement" and decided not to pursue any further legal action against each other.
The plaintiff reportedly agreed with the court's decision, according to court documents.
Pol.Maj. Sawai is currently serving at Nang Loeng Police Station, and he has been recently promoted to the rank of Pol.LtCol. He was briefly suspended of his duties by a police committee, but the internal investigation later cleared the officer of his alleged charges, and reinstated him back to his post.
