The department will also probe the forged signature claims of a senior engineer linked to the project, reports the Bangkok Post.
Justice Minister Pol Col Tawee Sodsong and DSI director-general Pol Maj Yutthana Praedam held a meeting yesterday at the site of the collapse to follow up on the investigation against the two project contractors.
The investigation has been split into two cases. One deals with alleged business nominees and the other involves the forged signatures of Somkiat Chusangsuk, a senior engineer who claimed no involvement in the project.
The DSI has accepted both as special cases and confirmed it is investigating the two contractors, suspected of using nominees to win contracts for the project.
The investigation needs to scrutinise evidence including four contracts regarding the building’s structural design, construction supervision and design modifications.
As for the signature forgery case, the DSI says it has obtained the information and evidence required. It has sent the allegedly forged signatures and authentic ones to forensic experts for comparison, with the results expected within two weeks.
Mr Somkiat said he was falsely named as the “project supervisor” for PKW Joint Venture in documents related to design modifications to the building’s elevator shaft, despite having stopped working as a project supervisor more than 20 years ago.
He is pursuing legal action against those involved in the alleged forgery and has supplied evidence to both the DSI and police in a bid to clear his name.
The DSI is required to complete its probe into the nominee case before it can expand its investigation to cover other cases, such as the bidding for the project’s contracts.
Worasak Kanok-Nukulchai, an engineering expert and Asian Institute of Technology emeritus professor, described the tragedy as a “pancake collapse” which took eight seconds.
The floors collapsed sequentially, one on top of the other, like a stack of pancakes.
Compensation
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry will begin distributing compensation of B100,000 per victim to families affected by the collapse of the SAO building. The first round of disbursements begins tomorrow (Apr 18).
As of Tuesday, the official death toll had risen to 44, with nine injured and 50 people still missing from a total of 103 individuals reported at the scene.
Efforts to locate missing persons under the rubble continue, with authorities focusing on Zone C, where most victims were believed to be trapped.
Deputy Bangkok governor Tavida Kamolvej and Suriyachai Rawiwan, director of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, Tuesday offered an update on search and recovery operations.
Intensive work on Monday night led to the discovery of two more bodies and 24 body parts, which have been sent for forensic identification, they said.
One additional victim was confirmed Tuesday morning through DNA matching, raising the confirmed death count to 44.
DNA samples from 91 relatives have been collected for identification purposes, the authorities said.
Efforts are underway, with assistance from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to reach out to embassies and border checkpoints, particularly for information about missing individuals from Myanmar.
Regarding the on-site operation, heavy machinery has been deployed across all four zones of the collapse site to remove concrete and cut through twisted metal. Due to the large volume of steel, gas cutters and specialised tools have been brought in to assist.
The drilling operation is halted every now and then to allow officials to enter and inspect various points along with their K9 units. Search rounds by K9 dogs are conducted three times daily.
Regarding the latest relief measures, Ms Tavida said the Ministry of Interior has approved compensation of B100,000 per case, without requiring details on whether the deceased was the head of the household.
As of Tuesday, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) reported a total of 23,888 residents filing for earthquake-related assistance, with the highest number of requests coming from Chatuchak District (3,205 people), followed by Huai Khwang, Bang Sue, Phasi Charoen, and Thon Buri districts.
Under the BMA’s disaster relief regulations, district offices began holding site inspections for damaged buildings on Apr 10.
However, many property owners were not at home during visits. Officials have advised residents returning from the Songkran holidays to contact their local district offices for further assessment.
Affected individuals have 30 days from the incident - until Apr 27 - to submit claims for assistance. All 50 district offices are accepting applications during official hours. District-level committees will evaluate the damage and coordinate with BMA’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department for further assistance.