THAILAND: Thai police are preparing to press charges against engineers and state audit officials in connection with the fatal collapse of the State Audit Office (SAO) headquarters in Bangkok during the 28 March earthquake.
The 30-storey building’s failure, which claimed at least 86 lives, has sparked a wide-ranging investigation into construction flaws, forged documents, and unauthorized entry into the disaster zone.
A source from the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) said on Wednesday (7 May) that the investigation is about 80% complete.
Over 100 witnesses have been questioned, including SAO officials, injured survivors, the families of victims, and personnel from companies involved in the construction project.
The findings of the investigation will be combined with evidence collected from the scene, such as steel, concrete samples, and other materials.
These will be analysed by forensic police and experts to assist in determining the cause of the collapse.
At least five individuals are expected to face charges, some of whom were initially treated as witnesses.
Among those targeted are engineers suspected of professional negligence under Section 227 of the Criminal Code, which prohibits failure to follow industry standards during construction.
Charges under Section 238 — which applies when such negligence leads to fatalities — may also be filed.
Audit officials could face charges for misconduct on separate grounds.
The SAO building was the only high-rise to collapse during the 7.7-magnitude quake that originated in Myanmar.
At the time, the structure was only 30% complete, with over 50 workers on-site.
The SAO headquarters was part of a 2.136 billion baht (approximately S$84.4 million) government project intended to house the Office of the Auditor General.
Unauthorized Access and Forged Documents
On 29 March, a day after the disaster, five Chinese nationals were detained for allegedly entering the restricted disaster site without permission and removing 32 documents, including blueprints.
Although they claimed the documents were needed for insurance purposes, authorities seized the materials for forensic analysis to assess potential evidence of construction irregularities.
The individuals, subcontracted under the ITD-CREC joint venture — a collaboration between Italian-Thai Development PCL and China Railway No.10 (Thailand) Ltd — were later released but remain under investigation.
In a separate investigation, the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) found that 30 engineer signatures had been forged on construction-related documents.
Of these, only eight individuals confirmed that their signatures were genuine.
The DSI said that testimonies from engineers whose identities were allegedly misused, along with physical evidence gathered from the construction site, are central to the probe.
Investigators are also examining potential violations under the Act Concerning Offences Relating to the Submission of Bids to Government Agencies BE 2542, with a particular focus on bidding irregularities and the role of the PKW joint venture in overseeing the construction.
Multi-Agency Response and Ongoing Recovery
Authorities from the BMA, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, the Department of Public Works and Town & Country Planning, the DSI, and police forensic teams are coordinating efforts to gather evidence at the collapse site in Chatuchak district.
BMA official Suriyachai Rawiwan stated that paperwork is now being prepared to hand over the site of the collapsed building to the SAO, once search and rescue operations are complete.
A decision is also being made regarding where to store evidence related to the collapse.
Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai acknowledged the complexity of investigating construction material failures but pledged that all responsible parties “will be brought to justice.”
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt provided an update on the search efforts, noting that rescue teams had reached the SC2 staircase in Zone C of the basement without locating more victims.
Operations will soon proceed to the ST1 staircase in Zone B and are expected to conclude within four days.
The confirmed death toll stands at 86, with nine people injured and 14 still missing. Human remains continue to undergo DNA identification.
Authorities are also assessing the economic fallout and exploring compensation options for affected businesses in the area.
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