KANCHANABURI — A construction tycoon found guilty of conspiring to poach wildlife animals lost his bid on Monday to remove an electronic monitor attached to his ankle as a condition for his bail release.
Premchai Karnasuta of Italian-Thai Ltd., whose conviction was upheld in a December verdict, had a wound on his left ankle caused by the tracker, his lawyer told reporters today. The court ruled a removal is unnecessary because the device is attached to his uninjured ankle, but attorney Witoon Yamprai said his client suffered nonetheless.
“When he sleeps, the [tracker] rubbed against his left ankle, causing the wound,” Witoon told reporters,
Premchai himself declined to speak to the media about the case and left the court after hearing the judges’ decision.
The CEO of Italian-Thai Ltd was instructed to wear the tracking device as part of his bail conditions after he was released on a bond of 1 million baht.
In December, he was sentenced to a prison term of 2 years and 17 months. Under Thai laws, a month of jail sentence consists of 30 days, while a year of prison term counts as 365 days.
Premchai’s legal team has pledged to contest his conviction in the Supreme Court.
