Abroad
Thai beauty queen, 50, who ran charity accused of fraud & embezzling S$20 million in donations for personal use
She has been remanded.
November 09, 2026, 06:28 PM
Images via @boompanadda/Instagram.
Thai former beauty queen and actress Panadda Wongphudee, 50, was arrested at her Bangkok home on Nov. 6 over allegations that she misused public donations meant for her charity, Goodness Foundation, Khaosod English reported.
Panadda, who also goes by Boom, is a household name in Thailand and has long been associated with her good deeds and charity.
Her Instagram is plastered with pictures and videos of her wading through waist-deep water during floods.
Extent of alleged fraud
Thailand’s Criminal Court approved arrest warrants on Nov. 5 for Panadda and her husband, Atip Anantawan, accusing them of public fraud and money laundering, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
According to The Bangkok Post, of the 815 million baht (about S$31 million) donated to the foundation, 527 million baht (about S$20 million) was used for personal benefit.
These benefits included luxury goods and mutual fund investments.
According to Zaobao, over 300 million baht (about S$11.47 million) is suspected of having gone into Panadda's personal accounts, and about 200 million baht (about S$7.6 million) was transferred to her husband.
Police have frozen assets worth more than 100 million baht (about S$3.82 million) belonging to Boom’s family, including three to four houses, several plots of land, and about 22 cars.
The foundation has also suspended her as chair and stopped accepting donations.
Public complaints
Investigations began when a group of donors and members of the public filed complaints with Thai authorities, accusing Panadda's charity of fraud, money laundering and computer crimes.
Panadda started The Goodness Foundation and has since raised nearly one billion baht in donations for disaster relief, among other causes.
As investigators looked into Panadda and the Foundation, Panadda filed complaints of her own on Nov. 3 with the authorities accusing Atip and a construction contractor, according to The Bangkok Post.
Speaking to reporters, she gave few details of her complaint, but said that she was wrong to trust a man who had been close to her. She did not name her husband directly.
The police later clarified that Panadda's complaint accused Atip and the contractor of defrauding her foundation of about 50 million baht (about S$1.9 million).
According to investigations cited by The Bangkok Post, there has been no evidence so far directly linking Atip to fraud, although they noted his alleged involvement in transferring assets could constitute money laundering.
Atip has denied all allegations and says he carried out the transactions on his wife's instructions.
The Bangkok Post, citing police, reported that Panadda has also denied the charges against her but admitted to have personally handled financial transactions, and said that some of the money had been used for purposes not mentioned in the fundraising efforts.
Panadda apologised as she was taken into remand
As she was taken into remand, Panadda apologised to the public and said she was ready to face the judicial process, The Bangkok Post wrote.
Panadda did not seek bail. Her husband, Atip, sought release on bail but the request was denied.
She faces three charges, including colluding to defraud the public and conspiring to commit money laundering.
The scandal has provoked reactions from all corners.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin ordered a nationwide audit of all registered foundations, while those that had donated to Panadda's cause expressed anger at her alleged actions.
One donor to Panadda's foundation and a complainant had this to say, according to SCMP:
“We’re talking about a thief dressed up as a saint, someone who betrayed the faith of people across the whole country.
The victims are all the Thai people who transferred money to donate."
However, Panadda still has her supporters. "A diamond is still a diamond," one wrote on social media, according to SCMP.
