(From ThaiPBS) BANGKOK: The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) announced on Friday that the department has filed 16 court cases related to the procurement of GT200 scanners by governmental agencies against the Thai distributor of the UK-made devices.

The statement was issued after the Don Meuang District Court on Wednesday found the Thai distributor of the fake scanners, Avia Satcom, and its executive, Mr Sitthiwat Wattakit, guilty of fraud and sentenced him to nine years imprisonment and a fine of 18,000 baht.

DSI said in the statement that it had investigated all the complaints filed by governmental and provincial units which bought the GT200 bomb and narcotic drug scanners from Avia Satcom.

All the devices were tested and they found to be completely ineffective in detecting bombs or narcotic drugs as claimed by the distributor and its manufacturer, UK-based Global Technical, said the DSI.

PHUKET: Police have arrested three suspects, including a Thai-British man, who were found with 39,820 methamphetamine (ya bah) pills hidden in toy remote-controlled cars that were delivered to Phuket from Bangkok by a private parcel delivery service.

Bangkok Post: Pol Maj Gen Surachate ‘Big Joke’ Hakparn was approved Thursday to become the next chief of the Immigration Bureau, with an automatic promotion to the three-star rank of lieutenant-general.

Deputy tourist police chief Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn is tipped to become the new Immigration Bureau (IB) commissioner in the upcoming annual police reshuffle.

The Police Service Commission held a meeting Thursda to deliberate the reshuffle list involving officers in positions ranging from commanders to deputy commissioners general. The two-hour meeting was chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon, linked by the public to Pol Maj Gen Surachate and his rapid career rises.

Thaiger – A foreign man, who set fire to a house he was living in with his Thai wife, tried to jump off a cliff in Rawai this morning.

Firefighters were notified about the incident at a house in Rawai earlier today.

When firefighters arrived at the scene, the house was already well ablaze. It took half an hour to put out the fire. Furniture, walls and ceilings inside the house were extensively damaged.

Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos says, “the foreign man living in the house with his Thai wife set the house on fire this morning. After that he headed to the windmill viewpoint overlooking Yanui Beach on his motorbike.”