TWO HELD OVER RUMOURS

       Police yesterday presented two Thais with reported brokerage backgrounds who have been charged with spreading rumours that led to panic selling on the local stock market earlier this month.
       Thiranan Vipuchanan, 43, who reportedly used to work as a securities executive, was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport on her return from a European tour. Katha Pajajiriyapong, 37, also working for a securities firm, was arrested in Silom.
       Both were charged with violating the computer law after allegedly disseminating incorrect information that could threaten national security or cause public panic.
       An initial police report said Katha worked for KT ZMICO securities. There remained confusion about Thiranan's workplace, and a securities company linked with her strongly denied she was working for them.
       After she was arrested, a smiling Thiranan told reporters she was only relaying a foreign news report concerning Thailand on the first day of the two-day stock turmoil.
       "People were wanting to know why the market fell like that, so I translated news from a foreign media website. It wasn't my intention to cause the stock index to dive [further]," she said.
       Police searched her home in the Ratchadaphisek area and seized a computer notebook, mobile phone, digital camera, memory card and desktop computer hard disk. Similar evidence was also taken from Katha.
       Thiranan allegedly posted her "translation" on the Prachathai news website, under the user name "BBB". The other suspect, Katha, allegedly posted his contentious information on the "Under the same sky" website.
       Both websites are known for their strong political stance and sympathy for former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
       Thai authorities blamed rumours concerning His Majesty the King's health for the stock plunge earlier this month, which not only unnerved the stock market but also caused great anxiety for the Thai public in general. Calls were made for the government to conduct an inquiry into the source of the rumours, which some thought came from abroad.
       Yesterday's police press conference on the arrests was brief. The suspects were said to have been apprehended for allegedly violating Article 14 of the computer law by circulating false information concerning His Majesty. They face five years in jail or a Bt100,000 fine, or both.
       The suspects, who looked calm, said little to reporters.
       Police, however, claimed they had confessed to the initial charge of publishing information about the King's medical condition on the Internet. This was despite Thiranan telling reporters she was reacting to the stock market's deep dip rather than causing the sell-off.