2 arrested for spreading rumour
2009-11-01 16:30
Bangkok - Thai police arrested two people at a Bangkok airport on Sunday on suspicion of spreading rumours about the health of the country's 81-year-old king that triggered a slide in Thailand's stock market, police said.
Thai stocks plunged a combined 7.2% on October 14-15 as rumours circulated over the health of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who has been in hospital for more than a month, before rebounding 3.5% the following day.
"They were initially accused of feeding untrue information through a computer system which undermined the security of the nation," Captain Suttichai Tienbhodhi told Reuters.
They were taken to the police Crime Suppression Division for questioning, he added.
The king was admitted to hospital on September 19 with a lung infection and fever and has been seen only once in public since then, on October 23, when he visited royal monuments in the hospital grounds. The palace has said he is recovering.
Police said last week they may charge four or five people suspected of spreading rumours about the king's health.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has said it is seeking trading information on two accounts from two foreign brokers, Credit Suisse in Hong Kong and UBS in Singapore, in connection with the market plunge and was also looking at one domestic account.
Credit Suisse and UBS have so far not commented on the case.
The health of the king is a sensitive topic in financial markets because he is seen as the sole unifying figure in a politically polarised country with a long history of coups and upheaval.