Transcript of the above video: 

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing Surachate "Big Joke" Hakparn yet again. For those who are unaware, I've been following this person for quite a long time now actually. He at one time was the head of Thai Immigration. He's had a rather colourful career. He ceased to be a Police Officer for a fairly prolonged period of time before returning and then coming very close to becoming to National Police Chief and there was a lot of political maneuvering and things that went on with that; we covered it at the time on this channel. 

That said, I thought of making this video after reading a recent article from the Bangkok Post, bangkokpost.com, the article is titled: More evidence in 'Big Joke' case, says CIB. Quoting directly: "The Central Investigation Bureau is confident mounting evidence will be sufficient to bring charges in a bribery case linked to former Deputy National Police Chief Pol. Gen. Surachate Hakparn, Deputy Commissioner Pol. Maj. Jruykiat Pankaeo said. He said investigators believe the evidence gathered so far is strong enough to support legal action though more witness statements and details are still being pursued. Some evidence remains to be collected, and several issues require further questioning. The probe must be conducted carefully, he added, because the alleged bribery is tied to earlier cases concerning online gambling networks. Quoting further: "The investigation has also expanded to examine the possible role of a well-known university academic accused of acting as an adviser and allegedly helping to discredit critics. Summonses have already been issued to three civilians, and the case is expected to be forwarded soon to the National Anti-Corruption Commission." 

So we've been following this for a while. This is complicated and it's highly political. I've said before in other videos to those other YouTubers out there who just sort of really seemingly in some cases, just sort of cover things in Thailand purely from a click standpoint and really aren't familiar with the underlying substantive nature of some of this stuff. This is a story to probably stay away from insofar as it is complicated and you could find yourself having some problems if you're reporting on something that may or may not be true, etc. and you don't know who you're talking about because this involves some pretty big names and personages if you will, within the police apparatus as well as elsewhere within the establishment here in Bangkok. So something to bear in mind, anybody that thinks it's a good idea to cover this. 

Again, my history with "Big Joke" of covering him going back into Immigration and then the aftermath of that, and frankly it's interesting from a legal standpoint and things to sort of follow this. It has been insightful especially for those like me who didn't really understand how things like the police internal due process system worked for stripping someone of their rank for example as a Police Officer. So we followed that along due to sort of following his arc if you will. That being said, it remains to be seen how all of this plays out and we will certainly be keeping you updated on this channel as the situation evolves.