Thread: Foreign Police 'Welcome' to Question Blackmail Suspect

The Nation
June 30, 2015

Thai police are amenable to their foreign counterparts interviewing a former Petro Saudi International executive held for allegedly attempting to blackmail his former employer.

Pol Colonel Akaradej Pimonsri, acting commander of the Crime Suppression Police, said yesterday that Britain had dispatched its officers to Bangkok to question Xavier Andre Justo at Bangkok Remand Prison, as the suspect was accused of committing a crime in their country.

"We welcome requests from other countries if they want to talk to the suspect," Akaradej said.

Khalid Abu Bakar, inspector-general of Malaysia's national police, said a request has been submitted to the Thai police to interrogate Justo. Police will record Justo's statement before deciding on the next step, he said.

"We are working closely with Thai authorities on the matter. We have to wait for them to conclude their investigations on the subject, Justo," he said.

A Thai assistant police chief will visit Malaysia on Thursday to discuss the matter, he said.

Justo, 49, a Swiss national, was arrested on Koh Samui last week for seeking 2.5 million Swiss francs (Bt90.5 million) from PetroSaudi in exchange for not disclosing confidential information, according to Thai police.

He has denied the charges.

Foreign police 'welcome' to question blackmail suspect' - The Nation

Swiss National Xavier Andre Justo Appeals to Thai Court for Suspended Sentence



BANGKOK – Xavier Andre Justo the Petro-Saudi blackmailer has asked Thailand’s Appeals Court to order the suspension of his three-year prison term handed down by the Criminal Court in August for the attempted extortion of his former employer, Petro-Saudi. Justo’s lawyer Worasit Piriyawiboon filed the appeal on Wednesday the Bangkok Post Reported.

The Bangkok South Criminal Court on Aug 17 sentenced Justo to three years in prison, without suspension, backdated to his arrest on June 22.

Justo, 49, is a former executive of Petro Saudi International (PSI). He was arrested on Koh Samui island on June 22 for threatening to disclose confidential information obtained from his former employer relating to an alleged corruption case at 1MDB, a state-affiliated firm chaired by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.

He demanded Petro-Saudi pay him 2.5 million Swiss francs (about 90 million baht). Petro-Saudi rejected the demand in 2013.

Mr Worasit said the appeal petition argues that Justo should not be penalized under the Criminal Code’s Section 338, which carries a 10-year maximum sentence, but under Section 337, about the attempt to blackmail, since there was no real damage done as payment did not occur.

“The maximum under Section 337 is one year in prison, and with his confession Justo should get the jail term reduced by half. With no previous criminal record, it should then be suspended,” said Mr Worasit.

“The alleged documents were not shown in the court, to highlight the extent of the damage to the concerned parties. Also, the information that was claimed to cause damage was falsified by other people, not my client,” said the lawyer, who had submitted the appeal before the extended deadline this Friday.

He said the appeal also refers to a media conference by former police chief Pol Gen Somyot Poompunmuang and police spokesman Pol Lt Gen Prawut Thavornsiri on July 16, when they said the information relating to the Justo case had been tampered with to attack the leader of a neighboring country.

Therefore, the prosecution’s charge should be dismissed, said Mr Worasit.
Critics have claimed Justo’s arrest and his confession about the falsification of information was aimed at clearing Mr Najib’s name by undermining the credibility of the whistle-blower website Sarawak Report and its reports on corruption at state-owned 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Mr Worasit said he will seek his client’s release on bail, pending the outcome of the appeal, next week.

Swiss National Xavier Andre Justo Appeals to Thai Court for Suspended Sentence | Chiang Rai Times English Language Newspaper

Swiss National Xavier Justo Linked to 1MDB Investigation to be Deported to Switzerland

BANGKOK – Swiss National Xavier Justo was freed from prison in Thailand Tuesday after being jailed for blackmail and attempted extortion in a case linked to a scandal over Malaysian state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Xavier Justo was among 150,000 Thai and foreign inmates who were granted a royal amnesty this month by Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn. He will be deported to Switzerland, his lawyer said.

Justo was jailed for three years in August 2015 after Thai police said he admitted to blackmail and attempting extortion of his former employer, Petrosaudi International, a Saudi Arabia-based oil and gas company and former joint venture partner of 1MDB.

The Malaysian state fund 1MDB, once a pet project of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, who chaired its advisory board, is the subject of money-laundering investigations in at least six countries, including Switzerland, Singapore and the United States.

After his release, Justo, dressed in a white T-shirt, blue shorts and flip flops, was taken to an immigration detention center in Bangkok in a police van accompanied by four police commandos.

“I’m happy to be sent home,” Justo told Reuters as he went into the center. “I hope to be back by tonight.”

Justo’s lawyer in Thailand, Worrasit Piriyawiboon, said his client would be deported to Switzerland.

“It’s now up to immigration when they decide to deport him and up to his embassy,” Worrasit told Reuters.

In August, Justo’s sentence was cut to two years under a royal amnesty, prompting the Swiss authorities to request his transfer to serve the remaining term back home.
Thailand declined the extradition request, which Swiss authorities said in September they regretted.

Worrasit said it was customary for Thailand to deport people to their country when they are released, and Justo could do what he wanted when he got home.

“This is not an extradition. This is a deportation,” he said. “Once he’s in Switzerland, he’s a free man.”

Reuters was not able to reach the Swiss Embassy in Bangkok for comment.

Thai police said Justo leaked documents from Petrosaudi relating to its joint venture with 1MDB that were published by Malaysian and international media groups last year and formed the basis of the money-laundering investigation.

He was arrested on a Thai resort island in 2015 following allegations by Petrosaudi that he had demanded payment in exchange for not disclosing confidential information, Thai police said at the time.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib has denied any wrongdoing in connection with 1MDB and said Malaysia would cooperate with the investigations.

Swiss National Xavier Justo Linked to 1MDB Investigation to be Deported to Switzerland | Chiang Rai Times English Language Newspaper