Animal welfare foundation alleges B13 million embezzled

Watchdog Thailand founder says former president diverted donations for personal use

The president of the Watchdog Thailand Foundation (WDT), a non-profit animal welfare organisation, has accused her predecessor of embezzling about 13 million baht in public donations for personal use.

The foundation said on Tuesday that it had reported the alleged embezzlement to the police Central Investigation Bureau on Aug 28 and submitted supporting evidence.

WDT president and founder Bhurita Watanasak provided an update on Wednesday, saying investigators had questioned dozens of witnesses but had yet to issue a summons to the accused.

Ms Bhurita, who founded the animal welfare network in 2012, alleged that a review of bank statements showed the former president had transferred foundation funds into her personal bank account and an account belonging to her daughter, who was then the foundation’s treasurer.

Ms Bhurita said she had made the discovery after noticing irregularities in expenses for animal treatment and other foundation activities.

The transactions ranged from small sums to hundreds of thousands of baht, while some donations were allegedly spent without the foundation committee’s knowledge, she said.

The financial damage was initially estimated at about 13 million baht, according to Ms Bhurita.

The current treasurer, Supanee Chankham-ai, said the alleged losses had caused serious cash-flow problems and forced the foundation to scale back some of its assistance for stray animals.

Ms Bhurita said the foundation remained open to negotiations and the return of the money or other assets. Otherwise, it would continue pursuing the matter through the legal process. She said the accused would have an opportunity to respond once police issued a summons.

Watchdog Thailand was registered as a foundation on Oct 4, 2019.

According to its website, the organisation has helped rescue more than 5,000 dogs from the transnational dog-meat trade and has pursued a number of cases under animal cruelty prevention laws since 2014.

Watchdog Thailand Foundation president Bhurita Watanasak speaks to reporters on Wednesday at the police Central Investigation Bureau in Bangkok.