The suspect behind the bombing of a hospital in central Bangkok that left 25 people injured in May was on Wednesday sentenced to 27 years in prison, a court official said.
Watana Pumret, a 62-year-old retired engineer at the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, was found guilty of attempted murder after planting a bomb in a guest room for retired military officials at the military-run hospital in Bangkok.
The blast took place on the third anniversary of the May 22, 2014 coup that installed the current ruling military regime.
Watana told a news conference following his capture in June that he did it to protest against the regime and that he had no intention to hurt anyone.
His sentence was halved from life imprisonment due to his guilty plea, a typical practice in the Thai judicial system.
In September, Watana was sentenced to four years in prison for possession of war weapons, making his total sentence 31 years.
The regime had initially promised to stay in power for a “short period” to restore political stability following months of massive street protests against an elected government, but has repeatedly postponed election dates.
In October, following a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, also leader of the junta, declared that general elections would be held in November 2018, amid widespread skepticism.
The junta has refused to lift the ban on political activities put in place since the coup to allow politicians to campaign for the elections, prompting concerns that the date may be postponed yet again.
dpa/NAN.
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