Upakit Pachariyangkun ( th, อุปกิต ปาจรียางกูร; also spelt Uppakit Pachareeyangkun; born 28 October 1961) is a Thai businessman and

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, known for serving as chairman of United Power of Asia and Allure Group. He was appointed by Thailand's military junta, the National Council for Peace and Order, as a Senator of Thailand on May 24, 2019. In 2019, Upakit declared assets worth , making him Thailand's wealthiest senator.

Early life and education

Upakit was born on October 28, 1961, to , a Thai diplomat and former

foreign affairs minister In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

, and his wife Aphira. Upakit attended

Skidmore College Skidmore College is a private liberal arts college in Saratoga Springs, New York. Approximately 2,650 students are enrolled at Skidmore pursuing a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in one of more than 60 areas of study. History Sk ...

in New York, where he earned a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

. He subsequently obtained a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in Industrial Development from

Vrije Universiteit Brussel The Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) () is a Dutch and English-speaking research university located in Brussels, Belgium.The Vrije Universiteit Brussel is one of the five universities officially recognised by the Flemish Community, Flemish gov ...

. He then joined the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

Business interests

Business interests in Myanmar

Upakit founded Allure Group in Thailand. Upakit expanded his business interests to neighbouring

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

through a partnership with Tun Min Latt, a Burmese businessman. In 1999, the two men co-founded Myanmar Allure Group to operate Allure Resort, an illegal hotel and casino, in the Burmese-Thai border town of

Tachileik Tachileik (also spelt Tachilek; my, တာချီလိတ်, ; shn, တႃႈၶီႈလဵၵ်း, ; th, ท่าขี้เหล็ก, , ), is a border town in the Shan State of eastern Myanmar. It is the administrative seat of Tac ...

. Six percent of the casino's income was distributed to the

Myanmar Armed Forces Tatmadaw (, , ) is the official name of the armed forces of Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is administered by the Ministry of Defence and composed of the Myanmar Army, the Myanmar Navy and the Myanmar Air Force. Auxiliary services include th ...

. In August 2019, he divested from Myanmar Allure, reportedly selling casino resort for $8.15 million to a business partner, Chakris Kajkumjorndej, in order to join the Senate of Thailand. Dean Young Gultula, Upakit's son-in-law, was named his successor.

Criminal scrutiny

On September 17, 2022, following a police raid, Thai authorities arrested Tun Min Latt, Dean Young Gultula, and two Thai nationals on

money laundering Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...

and

drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

charges. Authorities seized $40.7 million worth in assets, including luxury cars, watches and bags, along with $239,091 in cash. On 3 October, Thai news outlets reported that the

Criminal Court of Thailand The Criminal Court ( th, ศาลอาญา; ; ) is a Thai court of justice of first instance responsible for the application of criminal law in Bangkok. The court is located on Ratchadaphisek Road and is colloquially called "Ratchada Criminal ...

had issued an arrest warrant for Upakit in connection with the raid. Within hours, Upakit's arrest warrant was abruptly overturned, and court summons were instead issued, after interference by leadership at the Criminal Court. Following the arrests,

Metropolitan Police Bureau Metropolitan Police Bureau () is a unit in the Royal Thai Police, and is responsible for maintaining security in Bangkok - the capital of Thailand. There are a total of 14 divisions (command units) and 2 direct divisions which report directly to t ...

officers who had sought Upakit's arrest warrant were mysteriously transferred to remote provincial posts. Kritsanat Thanasupanat, the lead investigator, was involuntarily transferred to a remote post in

Chaiyaphum province Chaiyaphum ( th, ชัยภูมิ, ) is one of Thailand's seventy-six provinces (''changwat''), located in central northeastern Thailand , also called Isan. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Khon Kaen, Nakhon Ratchasima, Lopb ...

. On February 15, 2023, during a parliamentary debate,

Rangsiman Rome Rangsiman Rome ( th, รังสิมันต์ โรม; born 31 May 1992), nicknamed Bai Phlu ( th, ใบพลู), is a Thai politician and activist. He currently serves as a member of Thailand's House of Representatives and the Move ...

implicated Upakit in a money laundering and drug trafficking case involving Upakit's son-in-law and Tun Min Latt. At a press conference thereafter, Rangsit accused Upakit of falsely declaring his assets before assuming his senate seat in 2019. Upakit owns the plot of land in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

which houses the headquarters of the

United Thai Nation Party The United Thai Nation Party (UTN), known in Thai as Ruam Thai Sang Chart ( th, พรรครวมไทยสร้างชาติ, ) is a Thai political party founded in March 2021 by Pirapan Salirathavibhag. It is running in the 2023 Tha ...

. On March 11, the Thai Judicial Commission's testimony from Manapong Wongpiwat, a police investigator, regarding Upakit's revoked arrest warrant was leaked to the media. The leaked testimony prompted concerns regarding internal interference by Criminal Court leadership in stopping Upakit's arrest warrant, and the state of

judicial independence Judicial independence is the concept that the judiciary should be independent from the other branches of government. That is, courts should not be subject to improper influence from the other branches of government or from private or partisan inte ...

in Thailand. On March 13, Damrongsak Kittiprapas, head of the Royal Thai Police, ordered a probe into irregularities surrounding the sudden revocation of Upakit's arrest warrant back in October. The following day, Chotiwat Luengprasert, the president of the

Supreme Court of Thailand The Supreme Court of Thailand ( th, ศาลฎีกา, San Dika), located in Bangkok, Thailand, is the highest Thai court of justice, covering criminal and civil cases of the entire country. Operating separately from the Administrative ...

, launched a fact-finding committee to conduct a formal investigation. On May 18, he was indicted on money laundering and transnational related charges by public prosecutors.

Personal life

Upakit's father, , is a former diplomat and Thai

. He has one sister, Thawadee. Upakit was previously married to Pareena Kraikupt, a politician.

References

{{reflist Thai businesspeople Members of the Senate of Thailand 1961 births Living people Skidmore College alumni Vrije Universiteit Brussel alumni