A former IT worker at the Australian embassy in Bangkok has been sentenced to two years' jail for installing tiny hidden cameras in women's bathrooms inside the secure government building.
Nayot "Bank" Thamsongsana, 39, was convicted in the Bangkok South Criminal Court after pleading guilty to two counts of committing an indecent act to persons over 15 years of age by threatening with any means.
During the investigation into the matter, 60 women who used the two embassy bathrooms where the cameras were installed gave statements to Royal Thai Police.
Two were filmed by the cameras, and their complaints formed the basis of the prosecution's case.
In sentencing Nayot, the judge said his actions were "a serious threat to society and had caused psychological damage".
The judge said she considered every document the Australian Embassy sent to the court, Nayot's guilty plea, and the fact that he had no criminal record before handing down the sentence.
She told the court the sentence was four years, but would be reduced to two years on account of his guilty plea.
Nayot began to cry and was comforted by his wife before being led away from the courtroom in handcuffs by Department of Corrections officers.
He has one month to appeal.
Three senior Australian officials — including the deputy head of the Bangkok mission, Julia Feeney — were in court to hear the outcome.
Nayot was arrested by Royal Thai Police in January, 2022, after a camera's digital memory card was found on a bathroom floor inside the Bangkok mission.
He was fired from his job as an IT systems manager the day after his arrest.
His guilty plea came a year later, on the day prosecutors and his defence had come to court for a witness and evidence examination hearing to determine his trial hearing dates.
During the sentencing hearing, the judge told the court that Nayot had paid the court 20,000 baht ($870) in compensation for each of the two women filmed, which they could collect from the court any time in the next five years.
The Bangkok embassy is one of Australia's largest diplomatic missions.
Already, the principal psychologist from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has travelled to the region to provide counselling.
Staff also have access to psychological support services in country, and 24-hour support through the department's employee assistance program.
"DFAT acknowledges the sentencing handed down today in the South Bangkok Criminal Court," a spokesperson for the department said in a statement.
"The department continues to support staff at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok."
