An ambitious army officer of Thai-Burmese ancestry,[REF] Phao married the daughter of General Phin Choonhavan [REF].
Made deputy director of the police, Phao quickly staged a show trial of the alleged "assassins" of King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII), in which three members of the palace staff were found guilty despite any evidence and were eventually executed even though they had earlier been found innocent.