Ex-PM Thaksin's lawyers given jail terms for "sweet-box bribery"

BANGKOK, June 25 (TNA) - Thailand's Supreme Court Wednesday handed down six-month jail terms on attempted bribery charges for a lawyer and his aides who had fought a lawsuit on behalf of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his spouse, Khunying Pojaman.

Lawyer Pichit Chuenban and his aides, Supasri Srisawat and Thana Tansiri, were sentenced to six-months jail each without suspension of enforcement of the verdict after they had been found attempting to bribe two million baht in cash to a court official on June 10.

Mr. Thana, for whom an arrest warrant had already been issued after he had failed to appear in court Wednesday, had offered the Bt 2 million kickback hiddenly offered with 1,000-baht banknotes in a sweet box to M.L.

Thitiphong Chompunud in a room inside the Supreme Court compound.

The court clerk -- whom Mr. Thana had told that it was only some
chocolates inside the bag -- turned down the attempted bribe after he had consulted with his superior at the court.

The Supreme Court, in charge of lawsuits against persons with political status which are currently in proceedings regarding the Bangkok's Ratchadapisek land lawsuit earlier filed against Mr. Thaksin and his wife, already notified the police for formal investigation of the bribery case for which the verdict had been delivered in advance.

Vichit Plangsrisakul, a legal adviser to Mr. Thaksin, said his boss would likely need a new lawyer to fight the Ratchadapisek lawsuit in court now that Mr. Pichit has been given a jail sentence.