Assets seized as iCon probe expands

Police want to question CEO about alleged bribe request from politician

The Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo) has impounded assets worth about 125 million baht from The iCon Group, its CEO and three others for 90 days while investigations continue into allegations that it ran a pyramid scheme.

According to a statement released on Tuesday night, the direct-sales firm was suspected of activities that constitute fraud. As a result, Amlo secretary-general Thepsu Bawornchotdara said there was a possibility that attempts would be made to transfer or hide assets that could be linked to suspected wrongdoing.

The assets seized consisted of money in stock trading accounts, current accounts, savings accounts and digital asset trading accounts, the statement said.

Apart from the company and CEO Warathaphon “Boss Paul” Waratyaworrakul, others whose assets were impounded were the actor and TV programme host Kan Kantathavorn, Thitaya Hong-upathumchai and Nichaphon Thongmee.

The development followed an announcement by the national police chief that nearly 1,100 people had now come forward to claim that they had lost money from investing with iCon.

And while police continue to gather evidence that could lead to criminal charges, they are also looking into allegations that a politician solicited bribes from Mr Warathaphon to ensure iCon would not face scrutiny.

Police interviewed the iCon CEO on Saturday but they plan to summon him again to discuss an audio recording purported to be of a conversation between Mr Warathaphon and the politician.

The conversation centres on financial support for the politician in exchange for lobbying efforts to prevent Mr Warathaphon from being investigated by a House committee.

One of the voices, allegedly a committee member, says, “Paul needs to take better care of me, giving me at least 100,000 baht per month to manage people. If Paul gives more, he can get anything done. If any committee calls, just let me know and I’ll handle it.”

Mr Warathaphon admitted on Monday on the Hon Krasae (Catching the Trend) TV programme that the voice in the recording was his, but he declined to reveal the identity of the other person.

Pol Maj Gen Charoonkiat Pankaew, deputy commissioner of the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), said the recording had been sent for forensic analysis to determine whether the voices were human or AI-generated, and whether the clip was edited.

The investigation will also focus on identifying the source of the audio clip, as they could be a victim, given that the conversation involved demands for money.

Mr Warathaphon will be asked whether he wishes to press charges against officials who demanded money from him, Pol Maj Gen Charoonkiat said.

Pol Lt Gen Piya Tawichai, a spokesman for the Palang Pracharath Party, insisted the party is ready to take disciplinary and legal action if there is any information or evidence linking party members to such wrongdoing.

The Department of Special Investigation (DSI), meanwhile, is carrying out another investigation, focusing on the company’s financial statements dating back to its inception in 2019.

It has found several significant irregularities, including issues related to income, expenses and the company’s balance sheet, said Pol Maj Yutthana Praedam, the acting director-general of the DSI.

iCon clinic under investigation

In a related development, a clinic under the iCon Group, which specialised in selling health and dietary supplements, could be in trouble for hiring a fake doctor, according to the Department of Health Service Support (DHSS).

Investigators are trying to determine if the iCon Wellness clinic on Ram Indra Road in Bang Khen district is the workplace for “Boss Mor Ek”, as seen in many videos. If it is, legal action will be taken against the clinic, said Dr Panuwat Panket, the head of the DHSS.

He said officials from his department planned to visit the clinic along with police and Food and Drug Administration officials.

The Medical Council of Thailand on Monday filed a legal complaint against “Boss Mor Ek”, also known as Thananond Hiranchaiyawan who is a key executive of The iCon Group. The DHSS on Tuesday filed its own complaint against Md Thananond for falsely claiming to be a medical practitioner.

“We need to confirm that it is his workplace,” Dr Panuwat said of the planned visit to the clinic. “If so, it means that the clinic is violating the law by hiring a person who does not hold a medical practitioner’s licence to examine patients. Legal action will be taken against the clinic owner.”

According to his explanation, The Icon Wellness clinic is legally registered with the department, and iCon CEO Warathaphon is listed as a member of the clinic’s board.