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[31] They focused on foreign nationals, with a spokesperson for the police claiming "Thais wouldn't do this". GRAPHIC crime scene photos showing the corpses of English backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller have surfaced online, traumatising their families. We won't comment on the trial process. [80][81], The Prime Minister of Thailand, Prayut Chan-o-cha, said "[foreign female tourists] think our country is beautiful and safe and they can do whatever they want, wear bikinis wherever they like. Suter had been a regular snorkeler and his death was totally unexplained. In September 2014, two European backpackers, Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were found murdered on Sairee Beach on Thailands island of Koh Tao. Thai police have said they will issue a summons for the British teenager raped on Koh Tao after her mother said she fled the island without reporting the crime because she feared for her life. [36] Footage near the crime scene also showed one of the three men running into a shortcut. Defense lawyers for the two men later alleged that police had rushed the investigation to . The men, apprehended soon after the pair's bodies were found, initially confessed to the crime only to retract their statements amid claims they were extracted by torture. [10], Witheridge and Miller travelled and arrived on the island separately on 25 August. [92], Thailand's government became concerned the murders may affect tourism to the country. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. David Miller 2014; The authorities said he had died after striking the diving board from which he was jumping. A Thai/Indian couple circa June 2021. [76], The International Commission of Jurists said "the defense must be afforded adequate time and facilities to explore whether the alleged destruction of evidence in this case was appropriate and unavoidable, and to test the prosecution case overall." Associate Professor Charnkanit Krittiya Suriyamanee, a criminologist and lecturer at the faculty of social science and humanities of Mahidol University, said he doubted the suicide theory citing some irrelevant evidences, according to Chiangrai Times. Something went wrong, please try again later. The body of 48 year old diving instructor Neil Giblin, from Birmingham, UK, was found dead in his rented bungalow on the island after he failed to turn up to a diving . Only if they are not beautiful." She was also part of the Sathya Sai Baba cult and lived with a self-proclaimed 'guru'. Police recovered the body and took it to the neighboring island of Koh Phangan. The mother told Der Farang magazine that she had been promised an autopsy report - but has still not been delivered. [58] Ostensibly, Wai Phyo changed jobs at the end of September and was travelling by boat to Surat Thani for his new job on the day he was arrested. In January 2014, 25-year-old Nick Pearson was found dead in the sea below a cliff while visiting the island. [10][32] They highlighted a British tourist who had shared a room with Miller as a suspect, labelling it a "crime of passion"; he became the subject of a nationwide manhunt before the police quickly dropped the lead. Christina, from Orpington, South East London, died shortly after arriving on Koh Tao. Dec. 24, 2015. Tony Witheridge bowed his head as bloody images of his daughter's body were shown on the third day of the trial of Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo. The coroner concluded there was not enough evidence to say where or how he met his death. An inquest had been held in 2014 as his death was being treated as suspicious. Since then the Samui Times has been inundated with . Both entered through the Ranong Province, allegedly without presenting themselves at a port of entry and without possessing a passport. 2040 / 2557, Regional Court of Appeal VIII No. One of the most famous Hollywood murders of recent memory was that of Lana Clarkson, the actress and model. 2023 BBC. Expats dont want to lose their time in paradise, Earley tells Time, as its cheap, its nice living, and its very easy to ignore what happens". The last known video footage of the Russian woman showed her walking to Chaloke Hin Kao bay and never coming back. On February 3, 2003, she was found dead of a gunshot wound in the mansion of famed record-producer Phil Spector. Elise fled 2.5km to through the jungle to Tanote Bay and took a room at the Poseidon Resort where she booked another ticket for Bangkok leaving on April 24. Measuring 21 square kilometres (8sqmi) in area, it is the smallest of three popular tourist islands in the Gulf of Thailand. [29][30] The police initially speculated about who the culprit might be, alleging various individuals of perpetrating the crime without clear evidence. The 25-year-old's mum Tracey told a documentary about the island she would warn parents not to allow their children to travel to the island. [47][75][12] Human Rights Watch said the case was "profoundly disturbing" and called for the verdict to be reviewed in a "transparent and fair appeal process". [77], An opinion piece in Bangkok Post wrote that "practically no one believes [Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo] really brutally murdered English tourists", adding "in Thai media of all kinds, the consensus is that Win and Zaw Lin are scapegoats. The country's prime minister, who had been phoning the national police chief daily for updates on the investigation, said "this should not have happened at all, as it will affect Thailand in the eyes of the international community". [26][27] However, her clothes were not tested for DNA. Picture: Viral Press/Australscope Mr Sachathamakul's wife, Anshoo. [62] They were both also charged with entering the country illegally, to which Wai Phyo had already confessed. The discovery of the bodies last September sparked a major police investigation and intense local and international pressure to find those responsible. "Thai courts make little allowance for the feelings of relatives," he said. They claim they did not receive an autopsy report and say his body was sent against their wishes to the same Bangkok hospital that carried out botched reports on the bodies of two Brits murdered on the same island in 2014. Thai police said a post-mortem examination showed he drowned. [46] The police then forced the suspects to re-enact the murder in front of media,[34] a move condemned by legal experts as prejudicing a fair hearing. [15] Experts have considered the forensic investigation to have been incompetent, and to have possibly framed the suspects. Belgian backpacker Elise Dallemagne, 30, was found hanging from a tree on April 27, 2017. [1][96], Although tourist arrivals to Koh Tao dropped in the months immediately following the murders, there was little lasting effect on tourism to the island.[92]. As the Witheridge family prepares for Hannahs funeral, her parents, Sue and Tony Witheridge, released this statement: Time makes the pain of this horrendous tragedy no easier to bear. Ben Harrington 2012; They think our country is beautiful and safe and they can do whatever they want, wear bikinis wherever they like, the prime minister said. Bernd's cousin Christina said: ''We cannot accept what the Thai authorities on the island are telling us. As we continue with our plans for our beautiful Hannahs party, our thoughts are with David Millers family who are suffering the same indescribable agony. [1][31] Pornthip Rojanasunand, a Thai forensic scientist, testified at the trial that the crime scene was poorly managed. [87][88] The protests angered Thailand's prime minister, who believed the demonstrations were a plot "instigated" to hurt the government. On 15 September, the bodies of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were found on Sairee Beach on the island of Koh Tao, between 4 and 5 am, a few hours after their deaths. Rockefeller Audio 2022. Koh Tao Mayor Chaiyan Thurasakul said the website is accused of damaging Koh Taos reputation by calling it Death Island. But among some foreigners, Koh Tao has taken on a more sinister reputation. A Thai police officer who was called to the scene of the killing of two British tourists on Koh Tao island in September 2014 testified on Wednesday, the first of dozens of witnesses who . [1][15][21], During an hours-long interrogation, during which the police used Burmese food vendors as interpreters[35] because the pair could not speak Thai,[41] the suspects confessed to the murders. Fears over the safety of idyllic Koh Tao were heightened after the killings of Brits Hannah Witheridge and David Miller in 2014. 'A perfect job' Authorities remain steadfast in their conviction they've found those responsible. Some of these workers said they can earn more money in Thailand compared to Myanmar. Their bodies were found on a beach on the island of Koh Tao last September. Had he hanged himself, the professor pointed out that the bruises should have appeared on the neck than on his wrists. A fascinating, cinematic, multigenerational history of the Cuban mob in the US from "America's top chronicler of organized crime"* and New York Times bestselling author of Havana Nocturne. [85][15][86] Prayut said that British and Burmese government representatives were "limited to observation" and had to "respect our processes". 2 minutes read. Christina Annesley, 23, was one of the many young Brits who sadly died in Koh Tao. Anthony Cardullo 2013 (USA); The father of murdered British backpacker Hannah Witheridge has wept as graphic photos of her body lying on a Thai beach were shown in court. Here's a timeline of the other suspicious deaths and disappearances on Koh Tao: On New Year's Day, 2014, before the Miller and Witheridge case first brought infamy to Koh Tao, 25-year-old Brit Nick Pearson was found dead in the water not far from the scene of that subsequent double murder. He also had to track down a man seen on surveillance footage leaving his daughter's flat hours before she was discovered. He had recently returned to the island after building up a motorbike rental business. The families of Miss Witheridge and Mr Miller are now returning to the UK. We'll be dignified for David. There were no signs he was suicidal. Most mainstream media provide only superficial accounts of what has been happening on the island and their published information is often inaccurate and understated the seriousness of the situation. British holidaymaker Christina Annesley, 23, died on the island in January 2015 after apparently mixing antibiotics she was taking for a chest infection with alcohol. By the mid 1980s, the criminal underworld . [51] The defence provided a separate explanation for the events on the night. We are furious that we have not been able to have an approved independent forensic examination.". While he claimed she "kissed the gun" and that it was an accidental suicide, others - including . The island of Koh Tao, off the coast of Thailand, is often described as a paradise. But behind paradise lies a grubby underbelly where, according to one report, there are "enough suspicious disappearances to warrant the island its own CSI franchise". Bernd Grotsch 2017; [31][65] Jane Taupin, an Australian forensic scientist brought in by the defence, claimed that the timeline of DNA extraction was dubious; a rapid analysis of DNA samples had happened in less than 12 hours,[34] which she said was unusual because "extracting DNA from mixed samples was difficult and time-consuming". The images shown to the court were graphic, reports Jonah Fisher in Thailand. Allegations about police brutality rocked the countrys economy that almost solely relies on tourism. Koh Tao has long had a reputation as a home for organized crime, corruption and as a place where the police protected local interests. The publicity about their allegedly botched investigation began in 2014 with the brutal murder of two British tourists, David Miller and Hannah Witheridge . Photographs of the bodies . Regional Surat Thani governor Chatpong Chatphum said the Koh Tao murders had dealt a serious blow to tourism. Andy was assisting the defence lawyers. . Valentina was reported to have been visiting the island to go freediving an activity the area is famed for among backpackers. On 15 September, the bodies of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were found on Sairee Beach on the island of Koh Tao, between 4 and 5am, a few hours after their deaths. The official story is they were walking back to their hotel at night and were jumped by 2 Burmese men. I am a legal practitioner in Perth, Western Australia who has been following events on Koh Tao very closely since the time of the murders of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller on 15 September 2014. [42][43] The police said the suspects' DNA matched a sample of semen taken from Witheridge's body, and to the hoe and cigarette butts found near the body. It has over 100 hotels and resorts and was deemed the busiest diving centre in Southeast Asia in 2014. Due to the nature of her passing, our beautiful girl has had little privacy. [74], The investigation was met with criticism by international media, human rights groups, and legal experts. DNA was collected from these three areas and sent to a police forensics lab for analysis. The brutality of the killings made headlines worldwide and cast a shadow across Thailands image as a safe and carefree destination for 20 million foreign visitors a year. The Koh Tao murders involved the death of two British tourists in Thailand in 2014. But although David's family called the verdict 'justice', the trial of the two Burmese migrant workers was plagued by accusations of human rights abuses. My name is Suzanne Buchanan. 2145/2559, "Two British tourists found dead on Thai island of Koh Tao", "Suspects in Thai Tourist Murders Face Dubious Trial", "Manhunt underway after brutal murder of 2 British tourists on Koh Tao", "Thailand's paradise island murder mystery", "What the Murder of Two British Tourists Tells Us About Thailand's Dark Side", "Thailand's Supreme Court upholds death penalty for men convicted of murdering British backpackers", "Koh Tao DNA evidence & international standards", "Thai court upholds death penalty for murder of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller", "Thailand backpacker murders: Burmese workers sentenced to death", "Thailand beach murders: A flawed and muddled investigation", "Koh Tao murders: DNA matches, confessions obtained, crime re-enacted", "Hearings Open Into Killings of Two British Tourists on Thai Island (Published 2014)", "Thai king commutes death sentence for Myanmar men in British tourist murder case", "Burmese men confess to killing British tourists on Koh Tao, Thai police say", "The Investigation Into Thailand's Backpacker Slayings Is Officially a Farce", "Migrants accused of murder of British couple in Thailand recant confessions", "Thai Dictator Faces Ire Over Murder Probe", "Koh Tao murder suspects plead not guilty", "Burmese pair to be executed for murder of British tourists on Koh Tao, Thailand", "2 Sentenced to Death in Killing of British Tourists in Thailand (Published 2015)", "Thailand murders: Two men found guilty and face death for UK killings", "Thai beach murders: Convicted men lose death sentence appeal", "Thai beach murders: Death sentence upheld by Supreme Court", "Backpacker's family 'grateful' for Thai king's clemency", "Koh Tao pair claim they were tortured before confessing", "Thai beach murders: DNA investigation into death of British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller 'incompetent at best', "Koh Tao murders: suspects in killing of David Miller and Hannah Witheridge say they were framed", "Koh Tao's dark side: dangers of island where Britons were murdered", "Thai Paradise Gains Reputation as 'Death Island', "Foreign Office calls in Thai diplomat over murder inquiry concerns", "Thailand murder suspects can't have British police report: UK judge", "Thai officials on alert as Myanmar protests spread", "Prayut lashes out at Myanmar Koh Tao protestors", "Thailand's Migrant Worker Woes Exposed in Koh Tao Murder Case", "Govt vows "high-tech" defence against hackers", "Island killings prompt stiffer worker rules", "Contesting narratives: the Koh Tao tourists murders", "Unofficial translation of Koh Samui Provincial Court No. And were jumped by 2 Burmese men [ 51 ] the defence provided a separate explanation for the feelings relatives... 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