Police in Thailand questioned the wife of British journalist Andrew MacGregor Marshall on Friday, reportedly grilling the Thai national over recent social media posts by her husband that may have breached the country’s strict lèse-majesté laws.
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Noppawan “Ploy” Bunluesilp, 39, the Thai wife of former Bangkok-based correspondent and author Andrew MacGregor Marshall, was taken to a police station in Bangkok after officers searched her family home in the city. He did not say whether Marshall’s wife would be charged.
Each charge of lese majeste – insults, threats or defamation of Thailand’s leading royals – carries up to 15 years in jail.
Mr Marshall, who is now not in Thailand, is the author of A Kingdom in Crisis which is banned in Thailand.
He also linked the questioning directly to unflattering photographs of Thailand’s Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn published this week by German tabloid Bild, which Marshall has shared on social media.
The widely loved and revered Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej is in frail health.
Ms Noppawan, 38, who like her husband formerly worked for the Reuters news agency, was taken to a police station, with her father and three-year-old son Charlie.
He said she was formerly a journalist for Reuters and NBC but now not working.
“There’s never been any instance where Ploy has helped my work”, he said, adding that he was confident the police will find that his wife and her family in Bangkok are innocent of any wrongdoing.
He posted pictures of the items he said were confiscated by police which included passports, an iPad, and iPhone and a flash drive.
“At that stage I expect her to be released”, he said.
BANGKOK (AP) Police raided the Bangkok home of a British journalist’s wife and questioned her for several hours Friday in connection with his social media posts containing embarrassing photographs purported to be of Thailand’s crown prince, the heir apparent to the throne. He said Friday’s actions gave her the opportunity to prove her innocence. “It is unacceptable to harass an innocent woman simply because she is married to me”, said Marshall, who also used to work for Reuters. He said her hoped Marshall would stop his “movement” to criticize the monarchy.
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Noppawan told reporters after her release that said she had asked her husband to stop his activities because they had an impact on his family.
