Thread: Two Tourists Brutally Murdered on Koh Tao, One Raped: Police Spark Thailand Manhunt

They could perhaps line up a few, then use a different one each day.

‘Torture made us admit killing British pair’

The men accused of murdering two holidaymakers on a Thai beach speak out in a crowded jail as doubts swirl around the case

THE most striking thing about Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo, both 22, is how small they are. Their black hair is closely cropped and skinny arms and legs protrude from drab prison outfits. In their bare feet they stand about and 5ft 3in and 4ft 11in respectively.

The men were detained after a bungled two-week manhunt for the people who raped and murdered British tourist Hannah Witheridge, 23, and killed fellow British traveller David Miller, 24, on the Thai diving mecca Koh Tao (Turtle Island), in the early hours of September 15 last year.

Police suspicions moved in quick succession from locals to Burmese migrants, then to British friends of the deceased, to speedboat drivers, to the son of the island’s richest man and back, finally, to Burmese migrants.

?Torture made us admit killing British pair? | The Sunday Times

So what happened to the male friend who claimed he was threatened by the local louts and fled overseas ? What was his name again ? Did he have a story to tell ? He seems to have never been referred to since ...

His name may well be Jack.

Originally Posted by Latindancer

So what happened to the male friend who claimed he was threatened by the local louts and fled overseas ? What was his name again ? Did he have a story to tell ? He seems to have never been referred to since ...

Think he had some sort of pedo conviction in his past, so the press dropped him as a source.

So this trail is being conducted by the press, how will the Land of Smiley happy Island warlords , fight the International Press pack.

THE families of two Brits murdered on a paradise beach in Thailand may never see justice — amid fears of a police cover-up.

The killings of backpackers Hannah Witheridge, 23, and David Miller, 24, last September cast a grim shadow over the holiday hotspot.

The suspicion of a cover-up is the latest twist in the trial of two Burmese migrants over the killings.

The case against Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo, both 22, has been riddled with controversy.

Rumours of a set-up by Thai authorities, desperate to preserve the country’s “paradise” image for tourists, are rife.

And now lawyers for the accused say the lack of re-testable DNA samples is proof of a disastrous police investigation, and possibly even a cover-up.

Brits who hoped for the sort of transparent, fair trial they would expect at home look increasingly like they might be disappointed.

The police say they have a watertight case and DNA links the defendants to the crime scene.

But critics, who include a group of British expats, reckon the Burmese men are scapegoats.

The trial, which adjourned on Friday after just three days, did nothing to dispel those fears.

Events at the small courtroom, on the island of Koh Samui, 6,000 miles from the UK, exposed the darker side of Thailand.

Journalists have been told they can’t write notes in court — something not unheard of but rare in Thailand — and the local press is conspicuous by its absence. Then there is the intimidation.

Thickset, menacing-looking Thai men hang around the court, glaring at witnesses and western journalists. We are told some are police officers in plain clothes

Sky News’ local Thai translator refused to return to court on day two of the trial saying she had been “frightened off by the mafia”.

The defendants initially admitted killing Hannah, 23, of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, who was also sexually assaulted, and David, 24, of Jersey, on the island of Koh Tao.

The suspects later insisted they were forced to confess after being tortured by interrogators.

If found guilty they could face the death penalty by lethal injection. But in a significant development, the court agreed to let the defence re-test supposedly damning DNA.

The move could eventually see the case chucked out as only a handful of items found at the crime scene can be re-examined.

These include a garden hoe, believed to be the murder weapon, and a few pieces of clothing.

Swabs of DNA taken from Hannah and David’s bodies have all been used up, the court heard.

The trial is due to resume next week and the defence is preparing to argue for the men’s acquittal.

A small army of expats have been at court each day to make it clear they think the wrong men are in the dock.

Andy Hall, who campaigns on behalf of Burmese workers who are often poorly paid, badly treated and given few rights, helped organise the defence team, whose lawyers are working for free.

Andy, originally from Peterborough, said: “They told us they feared for their lives and they believed they were just going to disappear if they didn’t admit to the crime. They were threatened with execution, with being burned, with being electrocuted

Mr Hall stressed: “We are not working to ensure that someone guilty of crime gets off. We are here to ensure a fair trial and justice for everybody.”

Up to a dozen westerners take seats in court at various times, behind the defendants who are shackled and in orange prison uniforms.

Locals talk of corruption, violence and threats all being part of island life. A handful of wealthy Thai families “run” Koh Tao, own many businesses and have the local cops eating out of their hands.

Police deny any wrongdoing.

A British woman, who refused to be identified, said she believed the defendants had been set-up.

“You have to understand how things work out here,” she said.

The trial has been horrendous for Hannah’s dad and brother, and David’s parents and brother, who have attended the court.

Craning their necks to hear the whispers of the translators next to them, they have had to endure unbelievably distressing evidence.

Witnesses described how David and Hannah’s semi-naked bodies were discovered

The families have also had to see photos of their bodies, taken at the crime scene.

But despite all the rumours, the Miller family is keeping an open mind. A verdict won’t be delivered until October.

— Jonathan Samuels is a correspondent for Sky News

The Sun

And the hits just keep on coming.

^^ His body language is all wrong for someone who is being wrongfully accused. A show of anger, while easily mistaken for guilt, would be the appropriate response if you were being accused of something you didn't do.

That doesn't mean he's guilty but it's not right either.

What about the Scottish man who worked on the island who's gone off the radar.

He feared for his life hiding in the 7/11 and posted on FB just before he thought he was going to get the same treatment "THE OWNER AT THE AC BAR DID IT".

This is one witness that should be called...

Indeed....what DID happen about him ???


Christopher Ware, pictured above, was apparently best mates with the male deceased. They had known each other since childhood. So not likely him, unless something weird happened, like he flew into a rage induced by ice.....yabaa.

Awww.

Cute!

Originally Posted by Luigi

Awww.

Cute!

The excuses are getting more childish by the day..

Originally Posted by Chittychangchang

Originally Posted by Luigi

Awww.

Cute!

The excuses are getting more childish by the day..

I'm guessing they had to delete some pics to free memory for more selfies on the SD card.

Originally Posted by Hans Mann

Originally Posted by Chittychangchang

Originally Posted by Luigi

Awww.

Cute!

The excuses are getting more childish by the day..

I'm guessing they had to delete some pics to free memory for more selfies on the SD card.

Yeah

This Septic Isle: Backpackers, Bloodshed and the Secretive World of Koh Tao

snip:

‘THE WORST THAIS IN THAILAND’

The murders of Witheridge and Miller sent shock waves through Thailand. “That the victims were tourists automatically drew more attention,” says Thai political analyst Saksith Saiyasombut. “And the shambolic investigation also didn’t help.”

Foreigners die surprisingly often here. There were 362 U.K. citizens who met their end in Thailand in 2014, more so even than in France, which attracts almost 20 times as many British visitors. But generally they lose their lives through traffic accidents, overdoses and suicides. This was very different.

Of the 25 million foreign visitors who touch down in Thailand each year, half a million grace Koh Tao, the smallest of three popular tourist islands in the Thai Gulf. The largest and most developed is Koh Samui, which also boasts the archipelago’s only international airport. The next in size is Koh Phangan, home of the infamous Full Moon parties, with a reputation for drugs and debauchery. Koh Tao is by far the smallest. Ringed by coral gardens and teeming with kaleidoscope shoals of tropical fish, it was primarily known, until now, for its diving.

But Koh Tao was a political penal colony from 1933 until 1947, and a sense of self-sufficiency and isolation exists to this day. Far from official oversight, de facto control falls to the owners of booming hospitality businesses that were developed on land originally obtained, via government concessions, for coconut plantations.

Feuding here is common and vicious. Greg Shepherd, 34, from Luton in the U.K., tells TIME he witnessed a man getting shot in the face in a bar north of Sairee Beach in the mid-2000s. “They took the victim away in a pickup truck and the barman just got a mop out and cleaned up the blood,” he says.

In general, tourists are almost comically unaware of this malevolent undercurrent. Yet it remains an open secret that “organized crime is rampant on these islands,” says Saksith. Little wonder the conversational staple of many long-term expats is, “These are the worst Thais in Thailand.”

Full report here: Thailand: Koh Tao Murder Trial Exposed. Ugly Truth of 'Land of Smiles'

^ Powerful article. As the Bangkok Post said, Thailand is indeed on trial on the world stage for this and many other things.

^Yep. Hoping it gets the royal shafting it so richly fucking deserves too.

That article should be put in the Lonely Planet guide book so backpackers are aware before they decide on travel plans.

Originally Posted by Chittychangchang

That article should be put in the Lonely Planet guide book so backpackers are aware before they decide on travel plans.

Along with this one . . .

Thailand: Koh Tao Murder Trial Exposed. Ugly Truth of 'Land of Smiles'

This guy is the number 1 witness! But where is he now? Why is he not being called to testify?

Sean McAnna,26, from, Shotts, Lanarkshire, who said on Facebook ‘The mafia are trying to kill me!’, before fleeing Koh Tao in a media frenzy three days after the murders.

It's a very badly presented show trial designed to appease. Because the military are used to dealing with frightened fuckwits, they believe this will pacify global media.

It's the reason the general believes all his own journos are retards. Just wait until he sees the verdict of the worlds press.

Farang no unnerstan.