Interpol has issued an international red notice for Red Bull heir Vorayuth Yoovidhya (pictured in 2012). Photo: Somchai Poomlard /Bangkok Post via AFP
By Lauren Day, ABC South-East Asia correspondent
There's a saying in Thailand: "Only the poor go to jail." And no case proves it like that of Red Bull heir Vorayuth "Boss" Yoovidhya.
In the early hours of 3 September, 2012, the then-27-year-old allegedly smashed his Ferrari into the back of a police officer's motorbike on a busy Bangkok road.
The officer was flung from the bike, dragged almost 200 metres under the car and died at the scene. But by the time police arrived, Yoovidhya had already sped away.
A trail of oil leaking from the sports car led investigators to his luxury home and medical tests reportedly taken in the hours after the crash showed alcohol and cocaine in his bloodstream.
Police originally accused Yoovidhya of travelling at 177 kilometres per hour in an 80kph zone.
He was subsequently charged with five criminal counts, including speeding, hit-and-run, and reckless driving causing death.
But 12 years later, the heir to a family fortune estimated at around $US36 billion (NZ$59.6b) is still yet to face court.
Instead, the high-flying fugitive has spent over a decade globe-trotting in private jets to attend Formula 1 races, snowboard in Japan and go cruising in Venice.
This week, eight people accused of helping him escape punishment will face the Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct (CCCM).
But what is really on trial is the widely held belief that there are two justice systems in the country - one for the rich and another for the poor.
'A toxic tree yields toxic fruit'
The cover-up of the crash is alleged to have gone all the way to the top of Thailand's police force.
Among the eight who will face court this week are former police chief General Somyot Poompanmoung and former deputy attorney-general Nate Naksuk.
The case relates to a decision not to prosecute Yoovidhya and also allegations several of the defendants conspired to change the recorded speed at which the Ferrari "Boss" was driving.
Yoovidhya initially managed to avoid legal consequences by consistently failing to meet with prosecutors, with his lawyer claiming he was sick or on business trips abroad.
By the time a warrant was issued for his arrest in 2017, the grandson of late Red Bull co-founder Chaleo Yoovidhya had already fled overseas, where he remains.
Interpol later issued an international red notice listing the billionaire playboy as "wanted".
The same year, the statute of limitations expired on four of the charges against him but police had until 2027 to prosecute the most serious charge - reckless driving causing death.
Then, in 2020, the Office of Attorney-General (OAG) dropped all charges against him.
The public prosecutor in charge of the case, Nate Naksuk, did not offer a reason for the decision but CNN reported that a letter issued by the OAG to police suggested it was based on "new evidence" that claimed Yoovidhya was not speeding at the time of the crash.
Instead of travelling at 177kph in an 80kph zone, he was now estimated to have been driving at 79kph.
That claim was apparently backed by two additional witnesses, one of whom died suddenly in a motorcycle crash before he could give further evidence.
Shortly after the decision to drop the case, then-prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha appointed a panel to look into the handling of the case.
The Factual and Legal Inquiry Committee found there was a conspiracy to shield Yoovidhya from prosecution and it accused the deputy attorney-general of acting illegally to protect him.
"We found there was an organised effort to create a dishonest case," committee chair Vicha Mahakhun said.
"You can describe the coordinated effort as a conspiracy to damage the case from the start.
"We have a saying: 'A toxic tree yields toxic fruit.' It is inedible."
Now, the branches of that toxic tree are finally under scrutiny but few have faith that justice will be served.
Police corruption claims not new
The Red Bull case is just one in a long list of cases that have angered the population and made them lose faith in the country's system of law and order.
There have been allegations of police officers being involved in criminal gangs, smuggling oil, and being involved in illegal gambling rings.
There was also the high-profile case of Joe Ferrari, the police chief with a garage full of luxury cars and a celebrity girlfriend who was allegedly involved in torturing a suspect to death.
Transparency International ranks Thailand at a dismal 108 out of 180 countries in its latest Corruption Perception Index.
A poll earlier this year found the police force was the least trusted institution in Thailand, with more than 70 per cent of respondents expressing mistrust and almost two-thirds saying they did not trust the police's anti-corruption division.
Popular TV host and political commentator John Winyu said the Thai people had become accustomed to stories of police corruption.
"I don't want to say that there's no hope, but it's so common for Thai people to say that, you know, they don't have faith in the justice system anymore," he told the ABC.
He said too many police officers saw themselves as above the law and there was a different system for the rich and poor in Thailand.
"The sons or daughters of the police are quite wealthy, you know. They drive Porsches, they drive Ferraris, they drive Mercedes-Benz and they mingle with the elites," he said.
"They go to international schools together, they go to the same universities, they go abroad together, so the connection with the elites is strong.
"So for the poor, or even people in the middle class, if they don't have a connection with police, it's very hard for you to get out of a crime, because they're going to demand money or they won't help you."
Winyu said high-profile corruption cases like this damage the country's reputation at a time Thailand desperately needed foreign investment.
"Thailand's economy is in a terrible state right now, and the middle class down to the working class are struggling, so we really need foreign money," he told the ABC.
"But with such an unreliable justice system it's unlikely that major foreign investors will come."
He said he expects the case before the CCCM could see some punishment for those accused of covering up the fatal Ferrari crash but it's likely to be too little, too late.
"For Thai people, I think we feel that it's not justice anyway.
"They're going to try and put on a show or make us feel like someone is going to jail, but we all know that it's not justice.
"And the sad thing is, for the policeman who died, you know who got killed, and his family, you know they won't get any justice."
- ABC
