A Thai court has issued an arrest warrant for Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip, the media entrepreneur whose company co-owns the Miss Universe beauty pageant, over an alleged fraud case involving $930,000.
The development adds to a string of controversies recently surrounding the global pageant, including on-stage drama and accusations of sexism.
The warrant, issued by the South Bangkok Civil Court on Tuesday, followed a complaint from a plastic surgeon who accused Jakapong of fraud and withholding key information while persuading him to invest in JKN Global Group in 2023. JKN co-owns the Miss Universe Organisation.
According to a court statement released on Wednesday, “The defendant invited (the plaintiff) to invest knowing her inability to return the money within the appointed time.” The court had been scheduled to deliver a verdict in the 30 million baht ($930,000) case on Tuesday, but Jakapong did not appear. Judges said her absence “could be interpreted as fleeing,” prompting the issuance of the warrant.
The verdict has now been postponed to December 26. Meanwhile, local media reports suggest Jakapong may have already travelled to Mexico amid growing rumours about financial troubles. The Miss Universe Organisation has stated that “these legal proceedings are entirely separate” from its operations.
The controversy comes on the heels of a turbulent Miss Universe 2025 event in Bangkok last Friday, which saw a heated confrontation between a male host and the eventual winner, Miss Mexico, Fatima Bosch. During a livestreamed segment, the host accused her of failing to post promotional content and allegedly called her “dumb,” prompting Bosch to stage a walkout. He later apologised at a press conference, though the incident caught the attention of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who publicly praised Bosch for standing up for herself.
The Miss Universe pageant, once owned by former U.S. President Donald Trump, was acquired by Jakapong’s JKN Global Group in 2022 for $20 million. The company later sold half its stake to Mexican-owned Legacy Holding Group USA for $16 million.
In 2024, the Stock Exchange of Thailand delisted JKN’s shares after the company failed to submit financial statements and was found to have falsified them, adding yet another layer to the mounting problems faced by the embattled media mogul.
