Thailand's top court orders ex-PM Thaksin to pay US$542 million in taxes

BANGKOK: Thailand's Supreme Court ordered former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to pay 17.6 billion baht (US$542.37 million) in taxes from a 2006 share sale, senior officials said on Tuesday, reviving a case that led to his ousting 19 years ago.

AI Brief

Thailand's Revenue Department is examining taxes from Thaksin's 2006 Shin Corp sale to Temasek.
The former PM faces mounting legal troubles while serving a one-year prison term.
His daughter and sister were recently penalised for ethics and corruption cases.

In 2006, Thaksin sold shares Shin Corp, a telecommunications firm he founded, to Singapore's Temasek, raising concerns about a conflict of interest as well as allegations of tax evasion.

At the time, the former premier said the transaction was compliant with rules, but the sale ignited protests in Bangkok that eventually led to the army deposing him and seizing power later that year.

"This matter must proceed based on the judgement," Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said on Tuesday.

"The Revenue Department are examining the details," he told reporters when asked when the taxes would be collected.

The ruling is the latest blow against the polarising billionaire, who is currently serving a one-year prison term for a separate matter.

Thaksin's representatives declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.

In August, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, his daughter, was dismissed by court order over an ethics violation that stemmed from a leaked phone call between her and Cambodia's former leader Hun Sen.

In May, his sister, former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, was also ordered to pay US$305 million in damages over a botched rice scheme.

She was sentenced to five years to prison in absentia for the case in 2017 and has been living overseas to avoid prison.