Crime / Sex, Fraud Complaint

[aussie dollar]

'Black magic' man arrested

WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM


A police officer leads Harn Raksajit alias Naen Ae from his house, passing through the room where he used to perform his alleged black magic. Police arrested him on charges of fraud and sexual abuse of women. — SAROT MEKSOPHAWANNAKUL
Crime suppression officials yesterday arrested a man in a vast countryside house for allegedly defrauding and sexually abusing hundreds of women over the past six years.

Khamronwit Thoopkrajang, commander of the Crime against Children, Juvenile and Women Suppression Division, and Pavena Hongsakula, adviser to the justice minister, led a force of over 100 policemen to raid the five-rai compound of Harn Raksajit alias Naen Ae, the 45-year-old suspect, in Nong Don district of Saraburi province yesterday.

In the largest of eight houses in the compound, the authorities found Naen Ae sleeping with a 19-year-old bar girl from Bangkok.

The girl said she had stayed with the suspect for two nights awaiting a black magic rite.

In a Thai-style house functioning as the suspect's office, the officials found a large quantity of Buddha images, skulls, pairs of male and female wax dolls, photographs of men and women, condoms, sex-aid drugs including Viagra pills, and women's underwear.

The raid followed a complaint by Chamaiporn, the suspect's wife, who told Mrs Pavena that he had abused many women who believed he possessed black magic powers. Naen Ae, according to his wife's account, lured women to have sex with him to strengthen their bewitching power.

Police said Naen Ae, whose popularity had grown after appearing as a guest on a TV programme, also secretly videotaped his affairs with victims to stop them going to the police or demanding refunds from him.

He reportedly charged his clients 3,000-15,000 baht, depending on their financial status.

''We found hundreds of names in record books at his house. We know from witnesses that marked names refer to the women with whom he had sex.

''From only one of several record books, there are over 1,000 names marked, people he saw over the past 5-6 years,'' Pol Maj-Gen Khamronwit said.

Naen Ae would be charged with fraud and possibly with sexual abuse as some victims said they had been raped.