FINANCIAL INVESTIGATION AND ASSET RECOVERY: AN EFFORTTO COMBAT CORRUPTION IN THAILAND
Rata Rudravanija*

I. INTRODUCTION
Corruption is a serious threat to humanity. It can take many forms, such as bribery,embezzlement, graft, bid rigging, cronyism, money-laundering, tax evasion and extortion.
Whatever form corruption takes, it always comes at someone's expense, especially the public funds.
As a result, corruption is detrimental to the development of the State. It denies citizens access tobasic public services, damages the economy and undermines political stability, leading to weakerinstitutions and less prosperity of the people and the country.
Recently, the problem of corruption has become more complicated. Rapid growth of trade andinvestment opportunities, as well as the free movement of capital and people across borders,creates an environment where corruption flourishes undetected and unpunished. In today’s interconnected world, corruption is intrinsically linked to money-laundering, terrorism and organizedcrime, all of which have impacts that can be felt among the international community. The United
Nations Secretary General, António Guterres, recently noted that the annual costs and damages
brought upon by transnational corruption amount to a staggering 3.6 trillion US Dollars in the formof bribes and stolen money.1 To make matters worse, when countries decide to pursue justicethrough stolen asset recovery actions, there are considerable challenges to overcome, for example,
inscrutable offshore secrecy accounts and asset holdings, bureaucratic obstacles in mutual legal
assistance, and low investigative and prosecutorial capacity.2
The aim of this paper is to make a contribution to the existing financial investigation and asset
recovery framework by providing an overview of the financial investigation and asset recovery
process of Thailand through the roles of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) as thedesignated agency responsible for combating corruption in Thailand. The first part of this paper
will explain the power and duty of the NACC for a better understanding of the organization andits roles. Then it will describe the method of financial investigation as a part of corruption
investigation, followed by the process to recover the proceeds of corruption crime. Lastly, thispaper will present a number of challenges practitioners encounter in conducting financial
investigation and recovery of illicit assets.

*
International Affairs Officer, Bureau of International Affairs and Corruption Investigation, Office of the National
Anti-Corruption Commission (ONACC), Thailand.
1
Guterres, António (2018). Message on International Anti-Corruption Day. 9 December. Available at https://www.un.org/en/events/anticorruptionday/messages.shtml.
2
Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative (2018). StAR Annual Report 2018. Available at https://star.worldbank.org/
sites/star/files/star-annual-2018-09-reduced.pdf.

- 129 -

II. THE NATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION OF THAILAND
The National Anti-Corruption Commission of Thailand, or NACC, was established in 1999 as
an independent constitutional body with the power and duties to counter corruption in the Kingdomof Thailand. Under the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption, the NACC has the authority to conduct
investigations into allegations of public corruption and other related offences. Such offences
include bribery of domestic and foreign public officials, embezzlement, bid-collusion in public
procurement, unusual wealth or illicit enrichment of politicians and high-ranking public officials,
and malfeasance in public office, among others. Besides corruption investigations, the NACC isauthorized to inspect assets and liabilities of politicians and high-ranking public officials to verify
the accuracy of the declared assets and liabilities and to identify unusual changes in assets whichmight have resulted from unusual wealth or illicit enrichment.
Furthermore, the NACC is the designated lead agency responsible for ensuring Thailand’s
implementation of international obligations and agreements relating to anti-corruption. As a State
Party to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), the first and only legallybinding international instrument of its kind, Thailand has recently amended its Organic Act on
Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018) as part of its ongoing efforts to fully comply with UNCAC.
Below is a table showing provisions of the amended Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E.
2561 (2018) that have been implemented based on UNCAC:
UNCAC

Organic Act on Anti-Corruption,
B.E. 2561 (2018)

Article 2

Use of terms

Section 4

Article 10

Public reporting

Section 32

Article 12

Private sector

Section 176

Article 13

Participation of society

Section 32

Article 16

Bribery of foreign public officials
and officials of public internationalorganizations

Section 28(4)Section 97
Section 173-176

Article 25

Obstruction of justiceSection 177

Article 26

Liability of legal persons

Section 176

Article 29

Statute of limitations

Section 7

Article 31

Freezing, seizure and confiscation

Section 83
Section 84- 130 -

UNCAC

Organic Act on Anti-Corruption,
B.E. 2561 (2018)

Article 36

Specialized authorities

Section 41
Section 138

Article 43

International cooperation

Section 138
Section 140

Article 46

Mutual legal assistance

Section 140

Article 47

Transfer of criminal proceedings

Section 139

Article 48

Law enforcement cooperation

Section 140

Article 53

Measures for direct recovery ofproperty

Section 34(5)Article 55

International cooperation for
purposes of confiscation

Section 140

Apart from actively engaging and coordinating national efforts to improve Thailand’s anticorruption legal framework to be in compliance with international standards and best practices,
the NACC attaches great importance to the investigation of cross-border corruption cases. In 2013,
the NACC established the Thailand Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (TACC) to act as a focal
point to (i) promote and coordinate national efforts to effectively implement UNCAC and otherrelated international and regional instruments; (ii) provide operational guidance and support asrequested, both through formal and informal channels, by domestic and foreign law enforcement
counterparts which are conducting investigation on corruption cases involving Thai nationals or
Thai territory. 3 In addition to international cooperation in regard to transnational corruption
investigations, TACC also facilitates and collaborates closely with the StAR/INTERPOL Global
Focal Point on Asset Recovery 4 and the International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) 5 oninternational asset recovery efforts, especially in the exchange of information and intelligencesharing between agencies.

See www.nacc.go.th/tacc.
A joint collaboration between INTERPOL and the Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative to provide a secure
information exchange platform for criminal assets recovery. Anti-corruption practitioner and prosecutors from morethan 120 countries have been nominated as focal points to assist one another on matters relating to the tracing, freezing,seizing, confiscating and recovering of proceeds of corruption.
5
Established by the Basel Institute on Governance as an independent non-profit centre of excellence in asset recovery
in 2006.
3
4- 131 -

III. OVERVIEW OF FINANCIAL INVESTIGATION AND ASSET RECOVERY
IN THAILAND
A. Financial Investigation
There is a challenge that most practitioners face at least once when conducting corruption
investigations: how to prove that there is corruption. High-profile cases of corruption almost
always involve actors from different jurisdictions, and the money used in corruption is usuallytransferred through complex channels, which often involve banking institutions of various
countries. The financial strategies used to conceal the methods used to perform a corrupt act or theproceeds derived from it are becoming increasingly sophisticated. High-level corruption organizes
extensive resources to effectively camouflage the bribes and to transfer the acquired assets to safe
financial havens, especially offshore or other shell companies. The complexity and sophisticationof these systems causes considerable obstacles for practitioners, and seems to be in favour of both
bribe givers and bribe takers.
Therefore, a crucial element to successful investigations and prosecutions of corruption cases
is competent financial investigation. It is vital to focus on all possible financial angles when
conducting corruption investigation to uncover and prove corruption crimes by tracing the
movement of money and other assets. These illicit assets are key evidence to strengthen the caseand to secure conviction. It might also reveal further connections to additional suspects and otheroffences. Most importantly, by identifying and locating the corrupt assets, the competentauthorities can then start on the process to recover said proceeds of corruption back to the country.
The first step in financial investigation and the asset recovery process is to identify, trace andlocate the ill-gotten gains of the corrupt acts, as well as the methods in which the assets arelaundered. This requires gathering financial intelligence from various sources of information on
assets used in or derived from corruption. Financial intelligence is collected by public and privateorganizations and used by competent authorities in investigation of money-laundering cases andassociated predicate offences, including corruption cases. It is imperative for law enforcement
agencies to be able to gather, assess, analyse and provide reliable, accurate and relevant
information concerning the financial trails.
A main source of financial intelligence is bank information. Nevertheless, movements ofmoney can also be traced using databases and registers, e.g. tax statements, property ownershipregistry, enterprise/company registration, data of stock exchanges and available information aboutsalaries, income and spending, such as bills and expense reports.
Moreover, law enforcement authorities should take full advantage of whatever beneficialtransparency laws are at their disposal. In Thailand, the law requires the full disclosure of assets
and liabilities of politicians and high-ranking public officials. 6 This provides the competentauthorities with an invaluable tool for determining an individual’s demonstrable network andwhether there are reasons to believe the suspect to have other illegally obtained assets to support
him or her.

6

Section 102, Section 103 and Section 105 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).

- 132 -

Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) also play a significant role in financial investigation. They
generally act as an intermediary between financial and other reporting entities on one side and law
enforcement authorities and prosecutors on the other. FIUs’ main tasks are to receive and analyse
suspicious transactions reports and other information relevant to money-laundering, associatedpredicate offences and terrorist financing.7 Then they direct their analysis results to the competentauthorities. Most importantly, FIUs are also responsible for the exchange of financial informationinternationally with counterpart FIUs and other foreign competent authorities.8
The NACC, as a designated national agency with the power and duties to counter corruptionin Thailand, has authority to request information from banks and other financial entities.9 However,if the financial intelligence required needs to be obtained from other states, the NACC would often
collaborate with the Anti-Money-Laundering Office (AMLO)10 which is the designated FIU ofThailand. The reason is that AMLO has the advantage of utilizing its own channels of cooperation
with its partners, whether agency-to-agency or through other international cooperation, such as theEgmont Group, the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) and the Financial Action
Task Force (FATF).
B. Freezing or Seizing Illicit Assets
When conducting financial investigation, if there is a circumstance indicating the possibilityof the transfer, move, transformation or concealment of the corrupt assets, the NACC has the power
to issue an order of temporary seizure or freezing of such assets in the case where the commissionof the offence has a criminal penalty.11 In case of assets relating to the unusual wealth offence, the
NACC has the power to issue an order of temporary seizure or freezing of such assets which must
be within one year from the date of the seizure or freezing or until the court passes a final judgment
dismissing the case.12
The purpose of freezing or seizure of illicit assets is to prevent the dissipation of assets, i.e.
transfer, destruction, conversion, disposition or movement. However, there are other aspects thatshould be taken into consideration before freezing or seizing assets. One is that freezing or seizing
assets might alert the suspect of the ongoing investigation. Another is the time limitation of thefreezing or seizure order. Also, the management of the frozen or seized assets might have to bedeliberated before deciding to serve the freezing or seizure order.
C. Asset Recovery
After identifying and tracing the illicit assets, and freezing or seizing them if needed, the next
step in conducting asset recovery is the confiscation and return of the assets. As a general concept,
confiscation and return of stolen assets helps take away the profit of corruption and provides
restitution to victim countries and individuals. The international community has long recognizedthat the return of stolen assets and money back to the country of origin is necessary as they provide
Stroligo K., Hsu C., & Kouts T., Financial Intelligence Units Working With Law Enforcement Authorities andProsecutors (Washington DC: International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, 2018) 7.
8
Ibid.
9
Section 34(4) of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
10
AMLO is an autonomous government agency and is mandated under Section 40 of the Anti-Money Laundering Act,
1999 and its amendment.
11
Section 69(1) of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
12
Section 69(2) of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
7- 133 -

essential resources for the financing of public services and investments in infrastructure, which isvital for growth and development of the country. According to the StAR Initiative’s Asset
Recovery Watch database, approximately 8.2 billion US Dollars of stolen funds have been frozen,
confiscated or successfully returned to affected countries since 1980.13
As stated in Section 83 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018), in case ofproceedings against persons holding political positions, if the alleged culprit or the person
participating in corruption has used or acquired property in an unlawful manner as a result of thecommission of corruption, the NACC or the Attorney General of Thailand, as the case may be,
may file a motion with the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Persons Holding Political
Positions for the confiscation of such properties, unless it is the property of another person who
has no connivance with the commission of the offence.14 If it is a case against public officials, theproceedings would be held in the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases,
and the asset confiscation request would be filed with the Central Criminal Court for Corruption
and Misconduct Cases.15
Additionally, the Organic Act decrees the illicit properties that can be confiscated under
Section 83 as follows:(i) Property which any person used or had in his or her possession for use in the commissionof the offence;(ii) Property or interest that can be calculated into monetary value, which has been given,
requested to give or pledged to give to the alleged culprit by any person in an unlawfulmanner;(iii) Property or interest that can be calculated into monetary value which a person has obtained
from the commission of or from his involvement as an instigator, an aider and abettor, ora publisher or announcer in order for another person to commit the offence;(iv) Property or interest that can be calculated into monetary value which a person has obtained
from a disposal, distribution or transfer in any manner of the property or interest under (i)or (iii); and(v) Fruits or any other interest occurring from the property or interest under (i), (iii) or (iv).16
Furthermore, there is a new provision in regard to the value-based confiscation in the amended
Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018). It is stated in Section 84 of the Organic Act
that the NACC may undertake a calculation of value of the property at the time of the acquisitionof such property by the alleged culprit or the value of the property at the time that the NACC has
13
United Nations, Conference of the State Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption (2019).
Progress report on the implementation of the mandates of the Working Group on Asset Recovery, 20 March.
CAC/COSP/WG.2/2019/2.
14
Section 83 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
15
Section 93 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
16
Ibid.

- 134 -

passed a resolution that the alleged culprit commits an offence, depending upon whichever value
is higher at that time. 17 As a result, the NACC may file a motion with the Supreme Court’s
Criminal Division for Persons Holding the Political Positions for issuance of an order to makemonetary payment or confiscate any other property of the same value of the alleged culprit.18
In cases where there is a request for assistance concerning stolen assets from a foreign country
under the law on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, the NACC has the power to confiscatesuch assets, as Section 83 and Section 84 of the Organic Act would apply mutatis mutandis.19
However, the confiscated assets would not become properties of the state, unlike other illicit assets,
and the management of the confiscated assets would be in accordance with the agreement madewith the requesting country.20
IV. CHALLENGES
The more the world advances, the more complex and intricate corruption practices become.
There are several challenges practitioners encounter when trying to deal with corruption these days.
As has been stated earlier, high-level corruption employs extensive resources to conceal theacquired assets and to transfer the proceeds of crime to safe financial havens. The sophisticationand complexity of these crimes require financial experts who are well-trained and highly
experienced in dealing with financial crimes. However, in practice, the law enforcement agencies
responsible for counter corruption often do not have such specialized knowledge. The lack ofsufficient capacity and appropriate training of law enforcement practitioners shows a clear andpressing need for more specialized training and capacity-building, especially in financial forensics.
Another difficulty practitioners often face when conducting forensic accounting is theuncooperativeness of financial intermediaries or the states where the illicit assets are situated,
especially the so called “financial havens” or offshore countries. It is very rare for legal authoritiesof the fiscal haven countries to collaborate with law enforcement agencies in legal investigations.
As a result, an enormous effort is required in forging good relationships between countries whose
wealth has been looted and the financial centres where it ends up.
In addition, the recovery of proceeds of corruption needs international cooperation, whether
agency to agency or state to state, to be effective. Therefore, it is imperative to establish anticorruption alliances across the world to set up a strong support system for countries’ asset recovery
efforts. Law enforcement practitioners need to work together across agencies, sectors and borders
to make sure that the countries’ diverted public wealth finds its way back home to the people towhom it belongs.

Section 84 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
Ibid.
19
Section 140 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption B.E. 2561 (2018).
20
Ibid.
17
18

- 135 -

V. CONCLUSIONThe United Nations recognizes corruption as one of the biggest impediments to achieving its
2030 Sustainable Development Goals.21 Corruption deprives people of schools, hospitals and otherbasic services, drives away foreign investment and strips nations of their natural resources. 22
Combating corruption is a global effort that requires dedication from all countries.
As the main motivation for committing corruption is beneficial gain, countries can remove the
incentive for engaging in corrupt practices by depriving the perpetrators and others from the benefitof such crimes. In order to achieve that, countries must have effective legislation and procedures
to freeze, seize and confiscate proceeds of corruption, as well as facilitate international cooperation.
However, in today’s inter-connected world, corruption has become more sophisticated and isinherently linked to other transnational crimes such as money-laundering, terrorism and organizedcrime. The rapid growth of trade and investment opportunities, as well as the free movement of
capital and people across borders, also plays an important role in creating an environment where
corruption flourishes undetected and unpunished. Consequently, to keep up with this new threat,
law enforcement agencies need to have sufficient capacity to conduct financial investigation to
trace and freeze corrupt assets, collaborate with foreign counterparts and have effective
mechanisms for sharing assets confiscated with the requested countries.

United Nations, Law and Crime Prevention (2018). The costs of corruption: values, economic development under assault,
trillions lost, says Guterres. 9 December. Available at https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/12/1027971.
22
Ibid.
21

- 136 -