Payback time, Strangers in the night, in camera, She's back in town

Nathan, Saman

Alleged con artist Nathan Oman has settled a debt dispute with his former housekeeper Saman Sukserm, but lost his lawyer in the process.

At the Amnat Charoen district court last week, Nathan presented a cheque to Mrs Saman for 340,000 baht, not even half the amount of debt she assumed on his behalf.

He has pledged to pay her another 100,000 baht in the next 12 months.

That's enough for Mrs Saman, who has agreed to waive the 300,000 baht still owed, and drop her fraud complaint against the former singer.

Nathan told the court his foster mother had raised the money. He himself was out of work, though he hoped that, after all the fuss is over, he could stage a return to the entertainment industry.

Mrs Saman laid a police complaint against Nathan last year, accusing him of borrowing 300,000 baht from her, and failing to pay it back.

She raised the money by mortgaging family property, and borrowing from loan sharks. After interest, the debt grew to 740,000 baht.

In conciliation talks, Nathan drove a hard bargain. Mrs Saman agreed to lower her demand to 540,000 baht. However, that still wasn't enough for Nathan, says the Manager newspaper, who held out for 440,000 baht.

Last Monday, it looked as if Mrs Saman wouldn't get her money at all, after Nathan claimed the bank failed to transfer cash to his account in time.

By the next day, however, his money had arrived and, before the media, he handed over the cheque to Mrs Saman.

The court took the pair before the cameras for an Isan-style hand-holding and hugging ceremony, where each side says sorry to the other for past transgressions.

Nathan held hands with Mrs Saman and the relatives whose land she mortgaged to raise the loan. They wai-ed each other, and Mrs Saman wished him all the best.

"When he promised to pay back the money, I knew he couldn't be that bad," said Mrs Saman. "I hope he gets the chance for a new start. I still love him as much as ever," she said.

Putting down his ordeal to life experience, Nathan asked the public not to judge people by appearance alone. "If I was really that bad, this day would never have arrived," he said.

But Nathan's battle to recover his name is not over. In Bangkok, Nathan faces charges that he lied about his age to fraudulently obtain a 2006 national outstanding youth award.

The Department for Social Development and Human Security is taking legal action against him, saying it was deceived.

His lawyer, Pirawan "Boo" Cholpitakpong, has also left him under a cloud. While Nathan arrived at the court on Monday in a Toyota van, Boo travelled on a public bus from Bangkok. She turned up at the court to formally withdraw her services as Nathan's lawyer.

"He won't accept my advice as his lawyer, but listens to other people instead," she said.

"He claimed he had paid me 100,000 baht for my services, when in fact all he has given me is 30,000 baht to cover travel expenses.

"I took on the job of representing him as a favour to a friend. But today, I see he is not even prepared to take a meal with me. Here ends Aesop's fable of the farmer and the snake," she said bitterly, suggesting Nathan was being ungrateful.-

2.

Actress/model Bongkoj "Tak" Khongmalai is living in a fantasy world, says musician/actor Monton "Jay" Jira, who has dismissed her claims that the pair shacked up together.

"I haven't spoken to her for three or four years," said Jay, who said he was stunned by news reports last month quoting brassy Tak as saying the pair were an item. Reporters had asked her about her relationship with Jay after one sharp-eyed observer spotted her visiting his home at night.

"I went to his place to ask if I could use the internet, and seek his advice on making movies," she insisted.

That sighting was reported late last year. Since then, she had been spotted leaving his place, carrying her clothes and other belongings.

Confronted with the news, Tak admitted she had left Jay's home carrying her backpack, but denies they had fallen out. "We still send each other text messages every day. I know what he's doing. He gets annoyed by negative publicity in the media," she said.

Journalists asked Jay about her remarks. He said they had never lived together, nor seen each other romantically: "It is not unusual for stars to fantasise. Maybe she's 'in' with one of the characters in her fantasy," he said.

"I hear she's getting little work, so perhaps she's creating these stories to draw attention to herself.

"People may say that exposing her is ungentlemanly behaviour on my part, but what's the alternative - letting her spin her story?"

Tak insists she has text messages from Jay to show they were indeed in contact, though she agrees they had not spoken.

She showed the media one text message, dated last month, which said in English: "See you soon, but don't bring any newspaper reporters next time!"

She says the media misquoted her, as she never meant to suggest that the pair were living together, but she agrees his comments were unmanly.

"He might be handsome, but this is too much. I don't want to see him, or work with him again," she said.-

3.

Celebrity fortune-teller Mor Krit Confirm wants to apologise for allegedly defaming R&B singer Saranrat "Lydia" Wisutthithada - as long as the media doesn't get to hear about it, claims Lydia.

The pair met at the Criminal Court last week, where Lydia is suing Mor Krit (Sukrit Patumsriwiroj) for 50 million baht after he forecast incorrectly that she was pregnant.

She says the forecast damaged her reputation, as it led to speculation that she had fallen pregnant to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a family friend, and travelled to Malaysia for an abortion.

Mor Krit is fighting back with lawsuits of his own against Lydia and her boyfriend, worth 100 million baht. He is also attempting to sue her mother, after she tried to force an apology from him at a public function.

The court has knocked back that suit, though Mor Krit has lodged an appeal.

The court last week heard witnesses for both sides. Emerging from the court, Mor Krit said the dispute was likely to drag on for years.

Mor Krit denies he ever mentioned Lydia's name in connection with the pregnancy prediction, and says he apologised on television.

Lydia cites an interview on Channel 5 in which Mor Krit indeed mentions her name. As for the apology on TV, she says it came too late, as the damage was done.

"In our talks, he has proposed apologising to me personally, but only if we keep the details from the public eye. I am not prepared to accept that condition," she said. The case is continuing. -

Ann

4.

The influence of the Shinawatra family extends far and wide, as former presenter, actress and businesswoman Sirium "Ann" Pakdeedumrongrit has recently discovered.

Ann left the country abruptly late last year, without so much as a by-your-leave to her boss. Now back in Bangkok, Ann is apologising for her behaviour but insisting the media blew her mysterious departure out of proportion.

Some media reports suggested she was a minor wife to Payap Shinawatra, elder brother to former prime minister Thaksin, and that Ann fled overseas to escape the rumours.

She denies this, saying she had much better reasons to leave the country.

"My elder sister opened a restaurant in Britain about a year ago. I went over to take a look at what she is doing. I also enrolled in a language course."

She admits failing to tell her boss, Workpoint head Panya "Ta" Pirankul before she left, but insisted she told people close to him. Ann presented the singing contest Ching Cha Sawan on Channel 9.

"I thought the less I said about it, the better, though the reverse happened - the story just grew bigger and bigger," she said.

Mr Payap was a friend, nothing more. She had now apologised to her boss, and spoken to Mr Payap, who was sorry the media had dragged her through the mud.