Thai king fires royal guards for ‘adultery’

Thailand’s king has sacked four royal guards, two of them for ‘adultery’, in a fresh wave of palace purges a week after his royal consort was stripped of all titles for ‘disloyalty’.

Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn, 67, ordered the dismissal of two male guards from the ‘bedroom section’, the Royal Gazette announced late yesterday.

The other two officers failed to meet the standards of the royal guard and were dismissed without compensation, according to the gazette. 

‘They have committed inappropriate acts and adultery,’ the statement said.

Thailand’s royal family is protected by a defamation law that makes scrutiny of its actions all but impossible within the kingdom.

But the purges have offered a rare glimpse into the powerful palace, one of the wealthiest monarchies in the world.

The latest move comes after 34-year-old royal consort Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi was deprived of all royal titles three months after being appointed to the role for the first time in nearly a century.

She was accused of disloyalty and ‘acting against the appointment’ of Queen Suthida.

Vajiralongkorn married Suthida, his fourth wife, earlier this year.

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida attend the coronation inside the Grand Palace in Bangkok in May

General Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi, the royal consort, is seen in a series of palace images released in August of her in a fighter jet and wearing military uniform

The former consort Sineenat, who was also a general, has not been seen in public since her dismissal.

A palace statement last week accused the king’s royal concubine of being ‘disloyal’ and instigating a rivalry with Queen Suthida Bajrasudhabimalalakshana. 

Her behaviour is ‘deemed disrespectful to His Majesty’s grace… and caused divisions among courtiers and misunderstanding among the people’, the statement added. 

Queen Suthida married the King in May, just days before his coronation.

The whereabouts of Sineenat since her dismissal are unknown.

In August the palace released a series of action-packed pictures of Sineenat in a fighter jet, dressed in combat fatigues, while standing with him and the royal poodle.

After her fall from grace six other palace officials were sacked for committing ‘evil actions’. 

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida attend the annual Royal Ploughing Ceremony in central Bangkok. The royal palace has seen a purge of officials in recent weeks

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn and General Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi, the royal consort pose at the Grand Palace in Bangkok in August before she was stripped of her royal titles

All six were accused of severe disciplinary misconduct that caused harm to the royal service, and said they had been fired and stripped of all their official ranks. 

They had abused their status and used their high-ranking positions for their own gain, according to local media.   

The first official ousted as police lieutenant general, Police Lt. Gen. Sakolket Chantra, according to the Bangkok Post.

The rest of the names and ranks included Maj Gen Warinporn Kanisornsophon, Lt Peera Mongkolchairerk and Khunying (a senior ranking married female) Thidarat Thamraksa of the Royal Guards 904. Lt Chayanan Pangsang, and Maj Gen Khun Tharinee Rodson, were listed as attached to the Ratcha Wallop Royal Guards Royal Security Command.    

Vajiralongkorn ascended the throne in 2016 following the death of his beloved father and was crowned in an elaborate coronation ceremony in May.