Thai man jailed for 35 years for insulting royals

34-year-old Mr Wichai was convicted on 10 counts of lèse-majesté by a military court in Bangkok after posting photos and videos of the Thai Royal Family on a Facebook account which he fraudulently created under another person’s name.

In a strange twist, the court found that Mr Wichai was attempting to have that person arrested and jailed for lèse-majesté.

The court initially sentenced Mr Wichai to seven years per offence, which resulted in a total of 70 years, according to ILaw, a non-profit organisation which campaigns for freedom of expression in Thailand.

Due to his guilty plea, his sentence was reduced to 3 years and 6 months per offence, resulting in a total of 35 years.