The terms were commuted to 5,056 years because they confessed. All sentences are consecutive, but the law limits their total prison time to 20 years each, reports the Bangkok Post.
There were nine defendants in the case - Wantanee Tippaveth, Methi Chinpha (Wantanee’s husband), Piya Kirisuwankul, Pornsawan Phu-in-oy, Thawalrat Tippaveth, Wilaiwan Hongprachasap, Nittaya Pinnok, Boripat Khemrat and Piyaseth Thisopha.
The court heard evidence that from Mar 9, 2019, to Oct 30, 2019, the nine defendants advertised on Facebook, inviting people to invest in a savings scheme offering a high return. The minimum investment was B1,000. After nine months, investors would get a return of B930 plus the B1,000 capital investment - or B1,930 in total.
A total of 2,533 people joined the scheme. The total investment sum was B1.3bn. It was alleged the nine defendants did not use the money for investment but shared it among themselves dishonestly.
The prosecutors charged all nine with multiple counts of fraud.
The court found two of the nine defendants guilty as charged - Wantanee and Methi. The seven others were acquitted for lack of evidence.
Initially, Wantanee and Methi were each given prison sentences totalling 12,640 years. These were reduced to 5,056 years because they had admitted to the offences.