Chuwit and Santhana had confronted publicly at least twice over the recent days. Santhana filed a police complaint claiming drug abuse at an entertainment venue inside Chuwit’s hotel. Chuwit said Santhana was coming after him because he had exposed illegal activities involving a Chinese syndicate. A former MP and the leader of a political party, Chuwit once owned a number of massage parlours in Bangkok before entering politics. He recently came out in defence of some Chinese businessmen linked to Bangkok entertainment venues catering mainly to Chinese nationals.
