BANGKOK, Dec 2 (TNA) – Boonsong Teriyapirom, a former Thai commerce minister who was convicted in a high-profile rice-pledging scheme, has been released on parole, the Department of Corrections announced on Monday.
Boonsong who was sentenced to 48 years in prison, had his sentence reduced through royal pardons and met the criteria for parole after serving two-thirds of his term.
The Justice Ministry’s parole board approved the release, and Boonsong was fitted with an electronic monitoring (EM) bracelet before being released from the Corrections Hospital. He will be under parole supervision for three years and five months.
Department of Corrections Director-General Sahakarn Petchnarin said Boonsong’s release was in accordance with the law, as he had served the required portion of his sentence. The decision to release a prisoner on parole does not require court approval but must be coordinated with the Department of Probation.
Boonsong was a key figure in the Yingluck Shinawatra government and was convicted of corruption in connection with the rice-pledging scheme, which aimed to support Thai farmers but resulted in significant losses for the state. -819 (TNA)
