Section 189: Harboring an offender to avoid arrest
Statutory text (Thai original)
ผู้ใดช่วยผู้อื่นซึ่งเป็นผู้กระทำความผิด หรือเป็นผู้ต้องหาว่ากระทำความผิด อันมิใช่ความผิดลหุโทษ เพื่อไม่ให้ต้องโทษ โดยให้พำนักแก่ผู้นั้น โดยซ่อนเร้นหรือโดยช่วยผู้นั้นด้วยประการใดเพื่อไม่ให้ถูกจับกุม ต้องระวางโทษจำคุกไม่เกินสองปี หรือปรับไม่เกินสี่หมื่นบาท หรือทั้งจำทั้งปรับ หมายเหตุ: [อัตราโทษ แก้ไขเพิ่มเติมโดยมาตรา ๔ แห่งพระราชบัญญัติแก้ไขเพิ่มเติมประมวลกฎหมายอาญา (ฉบับที่ ๒๖) พ.ศ. ๒๕๖๐]
English translation
Whoever assists another person who is an offender, or a suspect accused of committing an offense which is not a petty offense, in order that such person may escape punishment, by providing lodging to that person, by concealing him, or by assisting that person in any manner so that he is not arrested, shall be liable to imprisonment not exceeding two years, or a fine not exceeding forty thousand baht, or both.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified. Always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
The elements are: (1) another person who is an offender or an accused suspect in a case that is not a petty offense; (2) an act of harboring, concealing, or otherwise assisting that person; and (3) the specific intent that the person escape punishment or evade arrest. It sits in the Title on Offences against Judicial Officials because it protects the State's ability to apprehend and try offenders. The petty-offense carve-out limits liability to help given in more serious cases. Section 193 allows the court to waive punishment where the assistance was given to the offender's own parent, child, or spouse.
Why this matters in practice
Exposure is up to two years' imprisonment, so this is a genuine criminal risk for family members, friends, or employers who hide a suspect. Intent to help the person avoid arrest or punishment is essential: giving shelter without knowledge of the person's status, or helping in a merely petty-offense case, is not caught. A close-family relationship (parent, child, spouse) can lead the court to waive punishment under Section 193. Anyone approached about their conduct after helping a wanted person should take criminal law advice in Thailand before speaking to investigators.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 14480/2556 (2013)
Assisting a suspect to evade arrest under Section 189 is a separate offense, distinct in act and intent from other crimes the defendant commits, and is punishable as a separate count.
The court held that the defendant's act of helping another suspect avoid arrest was a different offense from his other charges, and therefore was treated as a separate count rather than a single act violating several provisions.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 2535/2550 (2007)
Conduct that helps another person avoid criminal liability is characterized under Section 189, and is distinct from resisting or obstructing an official under Section 138.
The appellate court found the defendant's conduct was not obstruction of an official under Section 138 but rather fell within Section 189, helping another avoid punishment, illustrating the line between the two provisions.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Cited in 35 Supreme Court decisions (1962 to 2022)
Selected citing decisions
- Decision 2535/2550 (2007)
- Decision 4149/2547 (2004)
- Decision 3277/2547 (2004)
- Decision 3507/2546 (2003)
- Decision 4922/2539 (1996)
- Decision 4182/2530 (1987)
- Decision 2899/2530 (1987)
- Decision 2449/2522 (1979)
This list is selected automatically, weighted towards judgments that turn on this section rather than ones that merely recite it when passing sentence. It has not yet been reviewed by the firm.
Most often cited alongside
- Section 91 14
- Section 83 12
- Section 78 12
- Section 90 10
- Section 157 8
- Section 29 7
Sections that appear in the same judgments as this one most often. The figure is the number of decisions.
Counted across the firm's corpus of 83,652 Supreme Court decisions, 1921 to 2026. The count is complete; the stated year range trims rare outliers so it describes where the citations actually sit. These figures are computed by us and are not official court statistics. How we count these, and what we measured
Frequently asked questions
Is it a crime to let a wanted friend stay at my house in Thailand?
Yes, if you know the friend is an offender or suspect in a non-petty case and you provide lodging to help them avoid arrest, that falls under Section 189, carrying up to two years' imprisonment.
Does Section 189 apply if I help a family member?
The offense still applies, but Section 193 allows the court to decide not to impose punishment when the assistance was given to your own parent, child, husband, or wife.
Related guides on ThaiLawOnline
Cite this section
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Plain citation
Penal Code, s. 189 (Thailand) -
Academic citation
Penal Code (Thailand), s. 189. ThaiLawOnline, https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-penal-code/section-189/ (accessed 20 August 2026). -
Thai citation
ป.อ. มาตรา 189 -
Permalink
https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-penal-code/section-189/ -
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<blockquote cite="https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-penal-code/section-189/"><p>Whoever assists another person who is an offender, or a suspect accused of committing an offense which is not a petty offense, in order that such person may escape punishment, by providing lodging to that person, by concealing him, or by assisting that person in…</p><footer>Penal Code, s. 189 (Thailand) — <a href="https://www.thailawonline.com/thai-penal-code/section-189/">ThaiLawOnline</a></footer></blockquote>
The Thai text is authoritative. The English is an unofficial translation by ThaiLawOnline, free to reuse with attribution.