By The Straits Times | Created at 2026-10-07 13:26:44 | Updated at 2026-10-07 14:15:58
55 minutes ago
BANGKOK – Former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra told a Thai court on Oct 7 that his life could be in danger if authorities seize assets including bullet-proof vehicles as part of a US$500 million (S$640 million), decades-old tax dispute.
In November 2025, the Thai Supreme Court’s Tax Division upheld a tax claim by the Revenue Department against the former prime minister – one of Thailand’s richest people – over the 2006 sale of his telecoms firm.
Thaksin has sought a temporary injunction against the Revenue Department to stop it from seizing his assets to pay the bill, which his lawyer Winyat Chatmontree told AFP was worth more than 17 billion baht (S$645 million).
Appearing at the Central Tax Court in Bangkok on Oct 7, Thaksin said those assets included five cars, two of them bullet-proof, which he linked to his personal safety.
The 77-year-old said he had faced four attempted assassinations while in office. He was elected premier in 2001 and again in 2005, before being ousted by the army in 2006.
“I am not sure if someone intends to harm me,” Thaksin said, adding that if his cars were taken, “what if my life is in danger? Who will take responsibility?”
Thaksin also argued that he has already settled the bill for the tax-free sale of Shin Corp to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings.
The 2006 deal, which netted the Shinawatra family a US$1.9 billion windfall, sparked protests and became a lightning rod for opposition to Thaksin’s populist government.
He was ousted in a coup in late 2006 and went into exile for more than a decade, during which time he was convicted of corruption.
When he returned in 2023, Thaksin was arrested but sent to hospital and then freed. He finally saw the inside of a jail in 2025, serving eight months before his release in May.
The tax court is due to deliver its ruling on Nov 16.
The Shinawatra clan has for two decades been the key foe of Thailand’s pro-military, pro-royalty elite, who view their populist brand of politics as a threat to the traditional social order.
But the Shinawatra dynasty has faced a series of legal and political setbacks, including the court-ordered removal of Thaksin’s daughter, Paetongtarn, as prime minister in August 2025 over an ethics breach. AFP
