Phuket provincial clerk questions leaked disciplinary document, says case was already settled
A Phuket provincial clerk said a leaked disciplinary document was intended to damage his credibility, while records cited in reports show an earlier case ended with a 2% salary cut for three months.
Phuket provincial clerk Rungreung Thimabut said a leaked internal disciplinary document was being used to undermine his credibility, adding that the facts had already been examined and the case had been concluded.
In a Facebook post dated May 24, 2026, Rungreung, who is assigned to assist at the College of Local Administration under the Department of Provincial Administration, said the leaked confidential document had been kept at the department and asked why it had been released. He said the matter was old, that the facts had been proven, that the justice process had reviewed it, and that the disciplinary case had already ended. He also wrote that several Phuket beaches had to be returned to the state.
The post followed reports publishing disciplinary investigation documents related to Rungreung from his time as district chief of Sungai Kolok in Narathiwat. According to the report, he had been accused in connection with the issuance of 26 gun permits without sufficiently strict checks and with financial links to an online gambling network. The report said the final disciplinary punishment was a non-serious penalty of a 2% salary cut for three months.
A memorandum dated July 7, 2025, from the Interior Ministry, concerning an official accused of serious disciplinary violations, described two areas under investigation: the issuance of firearm possession permits and alleged links to an online gambling network. The document said Rungreung, acting as a local registrar, issued 26 firearm possession and use permits to a man identified as Sam Waedao without thoroughly checking criminal history, income documents, assets, and a conduct certificate. It said the man was later found to have behavior linked to narcotics.
The findings also referred to money trails connected to an online gambling case, saying bank accounts and phone numbers linked to Rungreung were used in transactions involving transfers of several million baht from an online gambling network. Although he denied knowing of the conduct of subordinates, the committee said this amounted to negligence that affected the image and credibility of the civil service.
The document concluded, however, that the conduct amounted to a non-serious disciplinary violation under the Civil Service Act of 2008 for failing to perform official duties in compliance with laws and regulations and for failing to preserve the dignity of his office. It recommended cutting Rungreung’s salary by 2% for three months.
The document was signed with an opinion by Nirat Pongsitthaworn when he was director-general of the Department of Provincial Administration. Nirat is now Phuket governor.
Separately, on May 20, 2026, Department of Provincial Administration director-general Narucha Kosasivilai ordered Rungreung and four other administrative officials from Phuket to report for duty in Bangkok. The order came after complaints alleging the collection of bribes from entertainment venues in Patong, Phuket, a matter that remains under further fact-finding review.
