Thai senator sentenced to 36 years behind bars for sex offences

BANGKOK: A prominent former Thai senator accused of sex crimes against four underage girls was sentenced to 36 years in prison on Tuesday, when an appeals court stiffened the sentence of a lower court.

The case of Chalerm Promlert became a national scandal six years ago and damaged the credibility of Thailand's parliament.

Chalerm was the deputy speaker of the Senate when he was arrested in January 2001 after being accused of paying procurers to find him teenage girls for sex. He allegedly paid each teen 4,000 baht to have sex with him at a hotel in the Bangkok suburb of Prathum Thani. All four girls were under 15 at the time.

A lower court sentenced him to 20 years in prison. The Supreme Court of Prathum Thani said in a statement that the presiding judge felt Chalerm should be punished more severely because he broke the law while he was a senator.

"The defendant was well aware that what he did was a serious crime," the statement said. Chalerm was taken to prison after the court handed down its ruling.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com