The Criminal Court yesterday rejected a police request to charge Ying Gai with an additional human trafficking charge due to lack of evidence.
However, acting chief of Metropolitan Police Bureau Pol. Lt. Sanit Mahathavorn said he has appointed an investigative team to probe the human-trafficking case against Monta “Ying Gai” Yokrattanakan after the prior investigation found that she had allegedly employed a 17-year-old girl from Mae Hong Sorn province a job but refused to pay her.
The girl also said Ying Gai threatened to prosecute her parents when she quit her job. Police believed the girl could have been trafficked if she had stayed with Ying Gai, Bangkok Post reported.
The 56-year-old wealthy woman has remained in the police custody after she was detained on July 7 and was not granted bail. She has been charged with making false complaints, attempted human trafficking, and insulting the royal institution.
Ying Gai stepped into the media spotlight last month when her former employee, 19, sought help from media after Ying Gai filed a police complaint accusing the teen maid of stealing THB10 million worth of gold and jewelry — a charge that could potentially ruin her chance of being accepted to a university.
Adding to the attempted human trafficking charges, the lawyer who represents the former maid, Songkan Atchariyasap, said he will present information obtained from three hilltribe teens in Mae Hong Sorn province to the police. Songkan claimed the teens had been persuaded by Ying Gai to “work abroad,” Thairath reported.
The teens were also threatened by Ying Gai, Songkan said.
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