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| Ex-Thai PM's wife guilty of fraud | Ex-Thai PM's wife guilty of fraud |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| The wife of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been convicted of tax fraud by a court in Bangkok. | The wife of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been convicted of tax fraud by a court in Bangkok. |
| Pojaman Shinawatra was sentenced to three years in prison, in the first of a series of cases against the family. | Pojaman Shinawatra was sentenced to three years in prison, in the first of a series of cases against the family. |
| She, her brother Bannapot Damapong and her secretary were charged with trying to avoid paying 546m baht ($16.3m) in tax when transferring shares. | She, her brother Bannapot Damapong and her secretary were charged with trying to avoid paying 546m baht ($16.3m) in tax when transferring shares. |
| The trio were freed on bail of 5m baht ($149,000) each pending an appeal, Thai court officials said. | The trio were freed on bail of 5m baht ($149,000) each pending an appeal, Thai court officials said. |
| Mrs Thaksin's brother was sentenced to three years in jail, while her secretary was handed a two-year sentence. | Mrs Thaksin's brother was sentenced to three years in jail, while her secretary was handed a two-year sentence. |
| Politically motivated | |
| A judge read out the verdicts in a televised ruling, saying that Mrs Thaksin "was meant to be a good role model as the wife of the prime minister". | |
| Mrs Thaksin remained emotionless. One of her three children present in court shook her head in dismay at the verdict. | |
| Thaksin Shinawatra has always said that no family member was guilty of any of the corruption charges against them. | Thaksin Shinawatra has always said that no family member was guilty of any of the corruption charges against them. |
| The military ousted him in September 2006, accusing him of corruption and abuse of power. Mr Thaksin has maintained that the charges are politically motivated. | The military ousted him in September 2006, accusing him of corruption and abuse of power. Mr Thaksin has maintained that the charges are politically motivated. |
| His party, Thai Rak Thai, was outlawed following the coup, and Mr Thaksin was banned from politics for five years. | |
| The telecoms billionaire and owner of English football club Manchester City returned to Thailand in February after 18 months abroad, living mostly in the UK. | |
| Analysts say that although widely expected, the guilty verdict will deal a blow to Mr Thaksin's ambition to clear his name and return to political life. |