Olympic hero Somrak convicted of sexual abuse of minor girl

1996 boxing gold medallist sentenced to over three years in prison by Khon Kaen court

Former Olympic gold medalist boxer Somrak Kamsing was convicted on Thursday of attempted rape of a 17-year-old girl and sentenced to two years, 13 months and 10 days in prison, and asked to pay 170,000 baht compensation.

The Khon Kaen Provincial Court read the verdict on Thursday (January 23) in the high-profile case. The public prosecutor sued Somrak, the 1996 Atlanta Olympics boxing gold winner, and Pichet Chinehantha, Somrak’s close friend, on charges of jointly abducting a minor over the age of 15 from her parents, guardians or caregivers for indecent purposes. The two had been charged with jointly taking a person over the age of 15 but not over the age of 18 for indecent purposes even if the person consented, attempting to rape another person by using force and violence while the other person was in a state of inability to resist, and committing indecent acts on a person over the age of 15 by using force and violence while the person was in a state of inability to resist.

Somrak had met the 17-year-old girl at an entertainment venue on December 10, 2023.

The court considered the plaintiff's evidence and found it to be substantial and accepted that the victim's testimony was in accordance with the facts. The court sentenced Somrak to a total of four years and eight months in prison, but commuted the sentence to two years, 13 months and 10 days, as Somrak's testimony was beneficial to the trial. 

The court ordered him to pay 50,000 baht in compensation to the relatives of the victim and 120,000 baht to the victim, with an interest at 5% per annum from the date of the tort. As for Pichet, the case was dismissed.After hearing the verdict, Somrak smiled and said briefly that he had to keep fighting, echoing the words of his lawyer, Itthisak Attakornwikrom, who said that there were many facts that needed to be considered.

After the incident, Somrak had revealed that he had met the girl at a pub in Khon Kaen and claimed he did not know she was a minor when he took her to the hotel. He said he stopped all sexual activity upon learning she was underage. However, he did acknowledge undressing and caressing the girl before falling asleep.

After the verdict, Somrak Kamsing filed a petition for bail during the appeal, and the court granted him temporary release, setting bail at 300,000 baht.

(2025/01/23-00:00)