On Thursday, Thai prosecutors have filed charges against 23 individuals and entities, including a Thai construction tycoon and a state-owned Chinese company, for alleged irregularities during the construction process that led to the collapse of the Bangkok National Audit Office building in the aftermath of a strong earthquake in Myanmar on March 28. The collapse resulted in the deaths of at least 89 people, mostly construction workers.
The 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar caused tremors felt in Thailand. Subsequently, the 30-story National Audit Office building in Bangkok collapsed. This was the only Thai building that collapsed during the earthquake, leading Thai authorities to question the quality of construction in the country.
The Office of the Attorney General of Thailand stated on Thursday that the case has been submitted to a criminal court, with a judgement expected within a few months.
“Investigators have agreed to prosecute 23 individuals and legal entities on charges of misconduct and falsifying documents,” the Office of the Attorney General said.
The National Audit Office building was a joint project between one of Thailand’s largest construction companies, Italian-Thai Development, and China Railway Construction, a state-owned enterprise from China represented by its subsidiary in Thailand, China Railway Tenth Bureau.
The charges involve 16 individuals and 7 companies, also listing the names of representatives of some defendant companies who are accused of violating building regulations and causing deaths due to negligence.
According to a statement released on Thursday by the spokesperson for the Office of the Attorney General of Thailand, Sakkasem Nisaiyok, the defendants include the CEO of Italian-Thai Development, Premchai Karnasuta, and an executive from China Railway Tenth Bureau (Thailand).
Karnasuta and fourteen others denied all charges when they were arrested by the police in May in connection to the collapse of the Audit Office building.
Prior to this, Siam Boonsom, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) in Bangkok, stated that after a preliminary review and hearing witness testimonies, the investigation committee found that the collapsed building design did not comply with departmental regulations or industry standards.
Investigators found that the positioning of the elevator shaft was not at the center of the building but towards the back edge, causing a deviation of the structural center from the geometric center. This misalignment led to the simultaneous collapse of the elevator shaft and foundation columns, resulting in the rapid vertical collapse of the entire building when it swayed during the earthquake.
Furthermore, cement samples extracted from the rubble did not meet standard requirements, and a steel reinforcement inspection revealed deviations from the approved construction plans. The Police Forensic Office confirmed that the signature of a professional engineer in official documents was forged and did not match the verified handwriting.
(References: Reuters and Agence France-Presse)