Deputy permanent secretary for Justice Pol Colonel Dusadee Arayawuth discussed the case with Police Inspector-General Pol General Panya Mamen for almost two hours at the Royal Thai Police headquarters in Bangkok.

A source said the meeting was held on Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s instruction so the two agencies resolve differences as their previous comments confused the public and led to doubts over the justice system.

After the meeting, Panya told reporters the two agencies had no conflict.

However, conflicting information has been released in the case of Jomsap, 54, who has been released after serving 18 months in jail after a fatal hit-and-run accident in 2005. She is seeking a retrial and witness hearings are scheduled to be held from February 8 to 10.

Panya insisted yesterday that police did not intend to harm Jomsap and duly gathered evidence related to the case, which included claims that a network of people was trying to set up false evidence.

He refused to give details of the alleged network and said the Royal Thai Police would discuss the case with the Justice Ministry again before the witness hearings. All the evidence would then be put up for the court’s discretion, he said.

‘Many others seeking re-trials’

Dusadee said the ministry was doing its job of providing justice to people such as Jomsap who were seeking a re-trial. He said that any evidence gathered by both agencies would be presented to the court.

Prior to the meeting, Dusadee said his ministry had many other cases in which people claimed they did not receive justice, so cooperation between the two agencies was important and a dispute between them would hurt the public.

He said he would avoid a “kia-sia” [a dispute reconciliation that allowed parties to maintain positions but did not necessarily solve the problem in a sustainable way or benefit the public].

Deputy police chief Pol General Dechnarong Suticharnbancha, who was also at the meeting, said police still did not find any flaws in how investigators collected evidence in the case.

Democrat Party lawyer Rames Rattanachaweng said Jomsap’s case was important but the public should not conclude that the justice procedure had flaws as the matter was before the courts.

He said police should let go of their urge to prove their agency was right or wrong and support people’s attempt to exercise their right for justice.

The National Human Rights Commission should also collect information as a case study to improve relevant laws or regulations. “We shouldn’t let this lesson slip by, but make use of it to benefit the Thai justice procedure as much as possible,” he said.

Meanwhile, the 71-year-old mother of Prapat Saenmuangkhot, who allegedly bought the pick-up truck Jomsap was accused of driving in the hit-and-run accident, was said to be so stressed by the public attention that she could not watch news anymore.