POLICE are taking steps to revoke the Thai passport of Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya, the heir to the Red Bull fortune, who is accused of a hit-and-run collision that killed a police officer in 2012.

Pol Maj-General Apichat Suriboonya, head of the police Foreign Affairs Division, said yesterday the division had found an immigration record that showed Vorayuth had left Thailand on April 25 for an unidentified country.

An arrest warrant was issued for him last week after he failed to appear before prosecutors.

He said police were waiting for a reply from their counterparts in the UK in regard to Vorayuth’s whereabouts to help the Office of the Attorney-General seek his extradition.

Apichat said they would discuss the possible extradition of Vorayuth with Interpol officers in the UK this week and if he was not in the UK, a warrant would be issued across 190-member countries to locate him.

“Police investigators at Thong Lor Police Station in Bangkok have already asked the Department of Consular Affairs at the Foreign Affairs Ministry to help revoke this suspect’s Thai passport,” he said.

“Authorities are currently checking how many passports and what nationalities the man has [in terms of passports],” Apichat said.

He said that in his 15 years in the division, he had never seen an extradition request for a hit-and-run suspect, although he believed they could bring him back to face prosecution eventually.

Meanwhile, deputy national police spokesman Pol Colonel Krissana Pattanacharoen said police had warned all immigration checkpoints to watch out for Vorayuth.

He said Thong Lor police had asked Apichat’s division to contact Interpol and work with the Office of the Attorney-General to try to extradite Vorayuth.

They also asked the Department of Consular Affairs about steps to revoke his Thai passport.

He said that a disciplinary probe was continuing against 10 police for malfeasance in office for their handling of Vorayuth’s case.

According to a fact-finding probe result, the 10 officers’ handling of the case reportedly caused delays that prevented two charges of speeding and reckless driving causing property damage to be filed against Vorayuth – as the statute of limitations on those charges expired.

Krissana said even if Vorayuth changed his nationality, it would not affect the case or extradition procedures. The statute of limitations for the most serious charge will remain valid until 2027, giving police time to locate and arrest him. Having repeatedly ignored previous summonses, Vorayuth has yet to be charged for the hit-and-run death of police Senior Sgt-Major Wichean Klinprasert on Sukhumvit Road in Bangkok five years ago.

He remains accused of reckless driving resulting in death, which has a 15-year statute of limitations, and refusing to stop to assist a victim, a charge due to expire in September.

The first offence carries a jail term of up to 10 years, while the latter could see him jailed for up to six months.