A lawyer Weerapat Srichaiya has filed the appeal against the Criminal Court verdict of July 31, which ruled Mrs. Pojaman, her step-brother Bannapote Damapong and Mrs. Pojaman’s secretary Kanjanapa Honghern, were guilty of tax evasion.

Mrs. Pojaman and Mr. Bannapot were both sentenced to 3 year’s imprisonment and Ms Kanjanapa 2 years.

The Lower Court on Friday accepted the appeal and would later forward the case to the Court of Appeals for deliberation.

Mrs. Pojaman’s lawyer said it was not clear how long the judicial process would take to compile documents, arguments and counter-arguments from both the defendants and the plaintiff.

Mrs. Pojaman, Mr. Bhanapot, and her secretary Ms. Kanjanapa were convicted of colluding to evade Bt 543 million (US$16 million) in taxes in 1997, through a complicated transfer of US $ 4.5 Billion worth Shinawatra Computer and Communications shares.
All three had pleaded innocent in the case.

Thaksin and his wife, Pojaman, who were married in 1976, divorced at the Thai consul general's office in Hong Kong on Nov 14, according to his spokesman Pongthep Thepkanjana.

The former ex-premier Thakshin Shinawatara was toppled in a military coup in 2006 , and was sentenced in absentia by a Thai court in last October for two years in prison for violating a conflict of interest law while he was prime minister.

- Asian Tribune -