Speaking of jail sentences (see my previous post), the AP reports:
A Thai protest leader whose movement helped topple three prime ministers was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years in prison for falsifying financial documents aimed at securing a $32 million government bank loan for his media empire.
Sondhi Limthongkul faces separate charges in connection with the aggressive protests of his People’s Alliance for Democracy, or Yellow Shirts, who in 2008 occupied the prime minister’s offices for three months and Bangkok’s two airports for a week. The group is still active, though less influential.
The 64-year-old Sondhi pleaded guilty to crimes involving documents he submitted for his Manager Media Group to secure a 1 billion baht loan in 1997 from the state Krung Thai Bank.
He was sentenced to five years each on 17 counts, but the 85-year term was halved because he pleaded guilty. The final sentence was capped at 20 years because it is the maximum allowable on the charge.
He was later released on 10 million baht ($328,000) bail pending appeal of his sentence.
There are also stories from the Bangkok Post and The Nation.
(All emphasis mine.)
UPDATE: This Bloomberg story provides more details on Sondhi’s background. There’s also an AFP story.
UPDATE 2: The WSJ’s Southeast Asia Real Time reports that analysts suggest Sondhi “…is likely to serve at least some time behind bars.”
(Image: Bangkok Post.)