Jet used by Thailand’s Thaksin Shinawatra lands in Bangkok, flight tracker shows

[BANGKOK] A private jet used by Thailand’s influential former premier Thaksin Shinawatra arrived back in Thailand on Monday (Sep 8), according to an online flight tracker, a day before a Supreme Court verdict that could potentially send the tycoon to prison.

It was not immediately clear if Thaksin was on board the jet that arrived in Bangkok, and his lawyer could not immediately be reached for confirmation. Thaksin left Thailand on the same jet for Dubai on Sep 4 on the eve of a parliamentary vote on a new prime minister that brought an end to the government of the Pheu Thai party he founded.

Amid speculation he had fled into exile, Thaksin vowed he would return and personally attend the court ruling on Tuesday.

Shortly after the aircraft landed, a black and silver Mercedes sedan often used by Thaksin drove into the private jet terminal, which airport authorities had secured with barricades and uniformed security guards.

Thaksin, a billionaire who has loomed large over Thai politics for a quarter of a century, could be jailed if judges decide that the time he spent in hospital detention in 2023 instead of prison should not count as time served.

He spent only a few hours in jail before being transferred to a VIP wing of a hospital on medical grounds in 2023 upon his return from 15 years of self-exile to serve his sentence for conflicts of interest and abuse of power.

Thaksin was sentenced to eight years for abuse of power and conflicts of interest, which was commuted to a year by the king. He was released on parole after six months in detention. REUTERS