| Prison Name: | Klong Prem Central Prison |
| Location: | Bangkok, Thailand |
| Status: | Operational |
| Classification: | Maximum security |
| Opened: | 1944 |
| Managed By: | Thai Department of Corrections |
Klong Prem Central prison (Thai: เรือนจํากลางคลองเปรม;) is a maximum security prison in Chatuchak District, Bangkok, Thailand. The prison has several separate sections. The compound houses up to 20,000 inmates. Within the perimeter of the compound are the Women's Central Prison, often referred to as "Lat Yao" or "Lat Yao women's prison". There is the Central Correction Institution for Drug Addicts (also known as "Bambat Phiset"), Bangkok Special Prison (Thai: เรือนจําพิเศษกรุงเทพมหานคร), and the Central Correctional Hospital. The Lat Yao men's section takes custody of male offenders whose sentence term is not over 25 years. As of 2002 the men's section held 1,158 foreigners from 56 countries out of a total of 7,218 prisoners.[1] It is a part of the Thai Department of Corrections.
The Klong Prem section for women houses female death row inmates.[2]
Klong Prem Central prison was originally a temporary prison established in 1944 in the Lat Yao District as a consequence of demands during World War II when Thailand was at war with Britain and the United States.[3] In 1959 it was used as a vocational training centre for those who, in the words of the Thai corrections department, "act and behave as gangsters".[4]
In 1960 the old Klong Prem prison on Maha Chai Road (now the Bangkok Corrections Museum) had become overcrowded so all prisoners were transferred to the vocational training centre site.[3] The Interior Ministry established a temporary prison within the new compound by dividing one part into a vocational training centre and the other part into the Lat Yao temporary central prison. In 1972 the Interior Ministry issued orders establishing the prison on Maha Chai Road as the "Bangkok Remand Prison" and the prison in the Lat Yao Subdistrict was designated the "Klong Prem Central Prison".[3]
Klong Prem Central Prison allows the families and pre-registered guests of inmates to visit prisoners. Visiting rules and times vary and international visitors have some special privileges. Different days are allocated to certain cell blocks. Weekend visits are typically prohibited. Additional privileges (e.g., phones, longer visits) when visiting foreign prisoners can sometimes be attained with a letter from the appropriate embassy or with bribes to prison guards. Food for prisoners can be purchased at the commissary by completing a form listing the items to be purchased and the prisoner's name. After paying for the items, the order is generally delivered that evening or the next day.
As of October 2018, prisoners are normally held in Bangkok Remand Prison until sentencing. After sentencing, they may be sent to either the main prison, Bambat Phiset (for drugs offences), or complete their sentence in Bangkok Remand Prison. In Bangkok Remand Prison there are eight buildings in which prisoners may be held.
With the large number of foreign nationals at Klong Prem, the prison is able to hold a football World Cup.[1] Teams of 10 are chosen by prison staff to represent Nigeria, Japan, the US, Italy, France, England, Germany, and Thailand.[1] Games consist of two 20-minute halves on a half-sized pitch. The winners are given a replica of the real World Cup trophy, which is made of wood in the prison workshop.[1]
Foreign prisoners are concentrated in Building 2, and those prisoners may have contact visits for several days providing visitors can demonstrate they have traveled from another country. As of June 2010, there are many foreign prisoners in other buildings of the prison complex.
Arrested for drug charges, he successfully escaped from the prison in August 1996 and has published a book titled Escape which describes his time in Klong Prem and his escape.[7]
British woman who was imprisoned in Thailand for drug smuggling after being caught trying to smuggle heroin and temazepam out of Bangkok's Don Mueang Airport. The King of Thailand granted Gregory a royal pardon and she was released on 18 June 2001.[10]
An Australian woman who in 1987 was arrested in Bangkok for drug trafficking. Blake received a royal pardon and was released in March 1998 having spent 11 years and two months in prison. She returned home 24 March 1998.
An Australian writer of Greek-Cypriot origin imprisoned in Thailand under the Thai lèse majesté law, for a passage in a 2005 novel of his deemed to defame the Thai monarchy. On 19 January 2009 he was sentenced to three years in prison. He was pardoned on 21 February, after having spent six months in prison.
An Australian man who was convicted in Thailand, alongside Warren Fellows and William Sinclair, for attempting to export 8.5 kilograms of heroin to Australia. After being transferred back to Lat Yao he was released on 7 April 1989, after being granted a royal pardon.
Arrested on 6 March 2008, by Thai Police for allegedly conspiring to supply the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). He was extradited to the United States on 16 November 2010. On 2 November 2011, he was convicted by a jury in New York of conspiracy to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, conspiring to kill Americans, conspiring to kill American officers or employees, conspiring to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile, illegal purchase of aircraft, wire fraud, and money laundering.
A Swede who was entrapped by the US DEA in a sting operation and subsequently sentenced to death sentence, later commuted to life imprisonment. Berglund was convicted for operating a methamphetamine lab. [18] [19]
Royal Noble Consort to King Vajiralongkorn who was stripped of her titles due to subversion and disrespect shown toward Queen Suthida. Released and rehabilitated following a royal pardon on 28 August 2020.[20]
former Prime Minister of Thailand who had sentenced in absentia for corruption during his time in office. Shinawatra was promptly arrested and taken to prison upon his re-emergence from exile in August 2023.[21] [22]