A Thai criminal court on Wednesday sentenced former defence minister and deputy leader of the defunct Thai Rak Thai Party, Gen. Thammarak Issarangkul-na- Ayutthaya along with three other co-defendants to three years and four months in jail without suspension for electoral fraud.


An Election Commission (EC) official who had been involved in the election fraud was sentenced to a five-year jail term.


Gen Thammarak was alleged of paying an EC official to tamper with the EC's database to enable members of the Pattana Chart Thai Party to run in the April 2, 2006 election which was boycotted by the then opposition Democrat Party . 

This election fraud later led to dissolution of Thai Rak Thai Party and a five-year ban for its 111 members in May 2007.