The AP reports the indictment in LA of Juthamas Siriwan, the ex-governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, and her daughter, Jittisopa Siriwan, with conspiracy and eight other counts. They were named in the FCPA prosecution of Gerald and Patrcia Green.We haven’t seen the indictment yet or read any news directly from the DOJ. But the Associated Press has reported that the Thai official named in the FCPA prosecution of Hollywood movie producers Gerald and Patricia Green has been indicted with her daughter “on charges that they accepted bribes from” the Greens in exchange for running the Bangkok International Film Festival.
The AP report said: “An indictment unsealed Tuesday in Los Angeles charges Juthamas Siriwan, the ex-governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, and her daughter, Jittisopa Siriwan, with conspiracy and eight other counts. If convicted, they each face up to 20 years in prison.”
Bribe-takers are not subject to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and it’s unclear what charges are contained in the indictment.
The Greens are scheduled to be sentenced on January 21 in Los Angeles. They were convicted in September of conspiring to violate the FCPA and money laundering laws, nine counts of violating the FCPA and seven counts of money laundering. Patricia Green was found guilty of two counts of falsely subscribing to a U.S. income tax return.
Gerald Green, 78, faces 20 to 25 years under the federal sentencing guidelines; the government has asked that he be jailed for life. His wife Patricia, 55, could be sentenced to between 19 and 24 years.
The DOJ said during the prosecution against the Greens that Siriwan accepted about $1.8 million in bribes between 2002 and 2007, when she was governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. She was also in charge of the Bangkok film festival. She awared the Greens contracts worth about $13.5 million, the DOJ said. She has denied any wrongdoing.
The AP said it was unclear if Siriwan and her daughter are in U.S. custody.
We’ll update this story as it develops.
[Added January 22: The indictment charges Juthamas Siriwan and her daughter, Jittisopa Siriwan with one count of conspiracy, seven counts of transporting funds to promote unlawful activity (bribery), and one count of aiding and abetting. If convicted, Siriwan and her daughter each face up to 20 years in prison. A copy of the indictment in U.S. v. Juthamas Siriwan, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Case No.: CR 09 00081) can be downloaded here.]
1 Comment
What has all this got to do with the USA? Surely this is interference in Thailand's internal affairs?
I'm not condoning corruption but why should the USA pursue a prosecution in another country by a national of that country when nothing has been done to affect the USA?
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