Thread: Kirsty Jones's killer got away with it!

at the time there was a witness who said
that she was with a policeman who was
walking her back to her guesthouse.
Sarah was the last to see her and then
what happened afterwards 'remains unclear'.
Whatever that means.
Have others on here heard about the police 'escort' back to her room ?

Mother of murdered backpacker Kirsty Jones vows never to give up hunt for killer
Clare Hutchinson
Aug 6 2011


Sue Jones, whose daughter Kirsty was murdered in Thailand

THIS Wednesday, in a small graveyard in a quiet corner of Powys, the family of murdered backpacker Kirsty Jones will gather together to mark the anniversary of her death.

It will be 11 years since the 23-year-old Liverpool University graduate was raped and murdered in a hostel in Chiang Mai, Thailand, three months into what was supposed to be a dream round-the-world trip.

But, despite numerous leads, DNA tests and witness interviews, Thai police have yet to find the person responsible for her death.

Speaking at the Brecon farm Kirsty called home, mum Sue Jones, 54, said her daughter was never far from her mind and that she would “never give up” on her fight to bring her killer to justice.

“It is impossible for anyone to understand how it feels unless they have been through it themselves,” she said.

“You think, would she be married now? Would she have kids? Would she be on the other side of the world working or travelling?

“I’m still in touch with a lot of her school and uni friends through Facebook and a lot of them are now married with children. That does cut me up a bit sometimes because she isn’t and that’s tough.

“But I’m still fighting on.

“I’m always positive that something can come out of this, that someone will be caught and punished for her murder.

“You have to remain positive because if you don’t you might as well give up.”

Since the grim day Sue and her husband Glyn, 58, switched on the television on holiday in Spain to see their daughter’s picture on the news, they have campaigned to see her killer brought to justice.

In the weeks after Kirsty’s body was found, raped and strangled, in her bedroom in the £1-a-night Aree guesthouse the case appeared to move quickly and a string of arrests were made.

In a statement after her funeral at St Bilo's church in Llanfilo, three miles from the family farm at Tredomen near Brecon, Kirsty’s parents said they hoped and prayed for a “swift conclusion to the investigations”, urging other families not to restrict the “free spirits” of their children if they wanted to travel.

But in the months that followed, after the suspects were released one by one and charges against the guest house owner, Londoner Andrew Gill, were dropped, any hope for a swift conclusion was abandoned.

More than a decade later and Sue, Glyn and Kirsty’s younger brother Gareth, now 32, are still keeping pressure on the Thai police to solve the case.

Two officers from Dyfed Powys Police, chief superintendent Steve Hughson and detective chief superintendent Steve Wilkins, who were both detective inspectors when they began investigating Kirsty’s death, have visited the murder scene, met their Thai counterparts and, most recently, been granted permission to re-interview key witnesses now living in the UK.

But as yet no concrete progress has been made.

To make matters worse, Sue and Glyn are now living in a caravan after their home burnt down the day before New Year’s Eve last year – the day on which their son Gareth was due to get married.

Sitting on a comfy cream sofa in the caravan, swatting away flies from the farmyard and surrounded by pictures of her son’s wedding day and her lost daughter, Sue said: “It was a beautiful wedding, but at the same time it was so sad because Kirsty wasn’t there.”

She said her daughter, who had just completed a degree in English language and media studies, had hoped to get a job in the media and described her death as like having “part of you taken away”.

She said: “Obviously the first few years are extremely difficult. It has left a great big gaping hole in our lives and always will do.

“You don’t get over it. You learn to live with it and there are still times now where I get very emotional unexpectedly, if I listen to the words in a certain bit of music or see something that I think, ‘Kirsty would like that’.

“We all deal with our feelings in completely different ways. I have tended to concentrate on trying to bring her killer to justice but Glyn deals with it by throwing himself into work on the farm.

“It is also difficult for our friends. Everyone copes in their own way and some people are very good with me about it, but others skirt around the issue, I think just because they don’t know how to react.

“Grief is a very private, personal thing.”

When, on January 1 2006, 21-year-old student Katherine Horton, of Thornhill, Cardiff, was beaten, raped, and then dragged into the sea on the Thai holiday island of Koh Samui, Sue sent a condolence card to her grieving parents.

She said it helped knowing that others, including the Hortons and the parents of Madeleine McCann, had been through similar situations.

“Unless you are in this situation you don’t realise what it is like,” she said.

“You automatically think that someone will be holding your hand but that is not the case. You have to work it out as you go along.”

She added she could not help but feel “frustrated” by the sluggish pace of the investigation.

In March, a potential new lead emerged when a video was uploaded onto You Tube in which an Australian man claimed to know the killer, a Thai lecturer.

However, despite informing Thai police and asking them to test the man’s DNA against traces found at the murder scene, no action has yet been taken.

“It is extremely frustrating for us because we fire questions at them through the Foreign Office and anything they don’t want to answer they will just avoid,” said Sue.

“Their way of doing things is completely different and we have to understand that, but it is hard to be patient.

“We have to play the waiting game, but I just wish there could be an outcome – whatever it is – so we could know one way or another.”

If the killer is eventually caught, Sue has promised to travel back to Thailand to be at the trial and she said there is only one punishment she would accept.

“I want to see them spend the rest of their life in a Bangkok prison.”

CHIEF Superintendent Steve Hughson (CORR), of Dyfed-Powys Police, has remained close to the Jones family ever since he first took up Kirsty’s case in 2001.

He said he and his partner on the case – DCS Steve Wilkins – still believed there was much more to investigate, including claims on YouTube that linked a Thai university professor to the scene of the murder.

“From a policing perspective it’s not evidence itself but it is a viable line of enquiry, and as such we feel it is important to rule it out,” he said. “As we reach the 11th anniversary of Kirsty’s death we continue to press for a successful outcome for this case because we believe that the case remains detectable and the answer lies in Thailand, probably in the Chiang Mai region. We have a full DNA profile of a person who is key to solving this murder and we are maintaining a three-pronged approach – to liaise with the Royal Thai Police on an operational level, to maintain political pressure on the Thai government and to support Sue, Glyn and Gareth until there is no need to do so anymore.”

He added: “It is not about solving it for us; it is about solving it for them and for Kirsty.

“She is the one who deserves to have the truth and we will leave no stone unturned until every line of enquiry is exhausted.”

KIRSTY Jones’ body was found in her room at the £1-a-night Aree guesthouse lying face down, partially naked, with a piece of cloth tightly wrapped around her neck. She had been raped and strangled.

By the time police arrived at the murder scene, several people had already been inside the room, including an entire Thai television camera crew.

It later emerged Kirsty had been heard screaming “leave me alone, leave me alone, get off me, get off me” on the night she died.

By August 16, Royal Thai Police (RTP) had eight suspects on their list for Kirsty’s killer, but DNA tests failed to link any of them to the murder.

In September the guesthouse owner, Briton Andrew Gill, was arrested and charged with rape and conspiracy to murder. But three months later the charges were dropped.

In June 2001 detectives from Dyfed-Powys Police travelled to Thailand to help with the investigation and in 2006 Thai police admitted DNA tests proved the killer was a Thai national.

Last year, UK police were finally given permission to re-interview key witnesses, including fellow travellers who had been in the Chiang Mai area at the time.

The results of those interviews have now been sent to Thailand, but no response has yet been given by the Thai police.

In March this year, a video uploaded onto video-sharing website YouTube named a man it claimed was Kirsty’s killer.

Dyfed-Powys Police asked police in Thailand to test the DNA of the man, a Thai university professor. RTP claims it has, as yet, been unable to track him down.

walesonline.co.uk

Originally Posted by Mid

In March this year, a video uploaded onto video-sharing website YouTube named a man it claimed was Kirsty’s killer.

Dyfed-Powys Police asked police in Thailand to test the DNA of the man, a Thai university professor. RTP claims it has, as yet, been unable to track him down.

walesonline.co.uk

These people couldn't lie straight in bed they are so unutterably crooked.

And folk talk about elections and democracy in the same breath. I recall one hapless idiot in another thread actually thinking recourse to Yingluck Shinawatra was a possibility in resolving a dispute in Chiang Mai because of " her links " to the place. Presumably the buffoon, like many here, failed to note her brother was Prime Minister for the period throughout the investigation and held a torch for the RTP which he claimed " can do anything ", although at the time of that particular piece of braggadocio he was referring to the slaughter of 2,500 of his own people.

Thailand is beyond redemption and this appalling case demonstrates why.

A filthy, irresponsible and grotesquely self indulgent people only concerned by the acquisition of easy wealth and status in pursuit of which there are no depths to which they would not stoop.

A month after Jones' death, police arrested guesthouse owner Andrew Gill, 36, but his semen did not match that found in Jones' vagina. ''This shows how Chiang Mai police were tricked by the killer,'' said Pol Lt-Col Narit.

No it doesn't, it shows what a corrupt and incompetent bunch of useless c**ts they are.

If it was a policeman who did the deed, or relation to one
then i can't see how it will ever have closure.
Would a female political leader of the country make a difference
to getting the culprit
i doubt it very much.
the biggest criminals are the police, so how can you have the police investigating ?

Warrant sought to DNA Kirsty Jones Thai murder suspect
12 August 2011



Kirsty Jones was on an around-the- world trip when she was murdered

Thai police investigating the murder of Kirsty Jones will have to seek a warrant to forcefully carry out a DNA test on a Thai lecturer.

He refused Dyfed Powys Police's request to give a sample voluntarily, after being approached by Thailand's Department of Special Investigation.

Kirsty, 23, from Tredomen, near Brecon in Powys, was raped and strangled at a guesthouse in Thailand in August 2000.

The Chiang Mai University professor has denied any links with Kirsty.

Police stressed that the professor's rebuffal of their request could not be in any way considered an admission of guilt.

But they will now have to go through legal channels to secure a DNA sample.

It is understood the DSI are fearful they may be sued, as the professor is a respected member of the community.

MURDER CASE TIMELINE

• 9-10 August, 2000: Kirsty Jones is murdered at the Aree guesthouse in Chiang Mai
• 11 August, 2000: Ten backpackers staying at the Aree guesthouse are interviewed by police and give blood samples for DNA testing
• September 2000: A British man is arrested and charged with rape and conspiracy to murder, but is later released without charge
• September 2001: Dyfed-Powys Police join the inquiry following the Jones family's concerns. Forensic officers fly to Thailand and later secure the killer's DNA
• August 2005: Sue Jones and her son Gareth visit Thailand with officers from Dyfed-Powys Police
• January 2007: Brecon and Radnorshire MP Roger Williams asks the then PM Tony Blair to meet the Jones family
• 24 July, 2011: Thai Police are asked to investigate a man named on a YouTube video as a possible suspect
• 25 July, 2011: MP Roger Williams criticises Thai police over their handling of the investigation

But the refusal of a DNA test is another setback for the investigation into Kirsty's murder, which happened 11 years ago this month in Chiang Mai in the Aree Guest House.

She was three months into a two-year around-the-world trip.

Despite a number of arrests, no charges have ever been brought over her death, and the lengthy, slow-paced investigation has frustrated the Jones family.

Police in Chiang Mai, the Thai northern capital, were heavily criticised at the time for their handling of the case.

The family's concerns led to Dyfed-Powys Police's involvement in 2001, and forensic officers later secured the killer's DNA.

Ms Jones's mother, Sue, has continued to battle for justice for her daughter, and has met Foreign Office and Thai officials.

On the 10th anniversary of her murder last year, Mrs Jones said she would never give up the fight to see the murderer caught.

"The main thing that needs to be done is to DNA the alleged suspect in the case," she told BBC Wales.

"If that was done we could either say that he is the guy who murdered Kirsty or eliminate him from the investigation."

She added that "not a day goes by" when Kirsty is not in the family's thoughts.

bbc.co.uk

A Beautiful Young Lady, Life Cut short for some unnecessary BS.
As a Human Being in this World, do not look the other way, take a stance and stand tall.

Detectives travel to Thailand to seek justice for Kirsty
17 Feb 2012

Senior Detectives from Dyfed Powys Police are meeting officials from the Thai Authorities in Chiang Mai next week to discuss the progress being made in the investigation into the murder of Kirsty Jones, a student from Brecon that took place in August 2000.

With the support of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Interpol, Dyfed Powys Police have continued to support the investigation in an effort to bring it to a successful conclusion.

Chief Constable Ian Arundale said, “The Thai Authorities are aware of our commitment to discover the truth and secure justice for Kirsty and the Jones family. Senior officers are still firmly of the view that this is a case which can be brought to a successful conclusion.

“It is an unusual case and we feel that even almost twelve years later, we can provide assistance to the police in Thailand to help catch the offender.”

Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Wilkins, lead officer on the case from Dyfed Powys added, “We are attending a meeting next week with the Thai Authorities to discuss the current position of the investigation as well as their main lines of enquiry, in particular the forensic evidence. I believe the DNA profile that they have should be the focus of the investigation, and we are willing to assist them in interpreting its value.

“We think that the answers to this case rest in Thailand, in particular in Chiang Mai. Back in October 2010 we responded to a Letter of Request from Thai Attorney General. We are still waiting for responses to some issues that we raised relating to the work that we carried out. This work included the re-interviewing of a number of witnesses who are now residents in the UK as well as cross boarder collaboration with the Scottish Crown Office and other Police forces and agencies. We also traced a number of witnesses living in Thailand and one living in India.”

Detectives travel to Thailand on the weekend and Dyfed Powys Police remain hopeful that the case can be solved and that the offender can be brought to justice.

newswales.co.uk

Backpacker Kirsty Jones murder detectives speak of hope after meeting Thai police
Feb 28 2012



Detectives investigating the murder of a Welsh tourist in Thailand in 2000 say they are hopeful of progress after meeting Thai authorities.

Kirsty Jones, 23, a student from Tredomen, near Brecon, was raped and strangled at a guesthouse in Chiang Mai.

Despite a number of arrests, no charges have ever been brought over her death.

Having flown to meet Thai authorities, Dyfed-Powys Police Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Wilkins said: “I am very encouraged by the content of discussions with police colonel Songsak Raksaksakul, who is now leading the investigation.

“We had a full and frank discussion regarding the evidence and the ongoing case. This included a presentation from the investigation team on their ongoing lines of enquiry.

“It is clear that they have, and continue to place, considerable importance on this investigation.

“It has always been our view, based on the forensic evidence, that the focus of the investigation should be on identifying the donor of the DNA recovered from the scene which is of Thai origin, in particular, from the area of Chiang Mai.

“A theory put forward by the original Thai investigation team was that the scene may have been contaminated following the murder of Kirsty Jones.

“We have never been presented with any credible evidence or intelligence to support this theory. Colonel Songsak shares our view that whilst not impossible it is highly unlikely.

“Whether it belongs to the offender or anyone who may have assisted him, the answer rests in Chiang Mai."

Det Chief Super Steve Wilkins added: “We also discussed at length a programme of continued testing of male offenders against the available evidence. They have and will be making comparisons against the DNA database in Thailand and certain categories of offenders in and around the Chiang Mai area.

“We have also offered assistance in relation to an appeal for information using the local media in the area and will explore the possibility and legality of offering a financial reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the offender.

“The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and in particular the liaison officer in the British Embassy in Bangkok, continues to provide valuable assistance.

“The Thai authorities have agreed to meet them on a bimonthly basis to discuss progress.

“It is likely that officers from Dyfed-Powys Police will return in the next six months to continue to discuss progress of the case.

“On our return we spoke with Sue Jones, Kirsty’s mother, who is pleased with the outcome of our discussions.”

walesonline.co.uk

I think the thread title needs updating. In terms of what they were trying to achieve, the police operation has been very successful.

I had thought this was all out in the open now ?

the tourist polis brother killed her

what is new in this post ?

pic from 2006 ..............



top middle is the suspect

George Bernard Murray Hoolahan
Hoolahan, 58, failed to appear at North Tyneside Magistrates' Court on July 13, 1999.

Police have a possible sighting of him in Nottingham.

ChronicleLive - News - Chronicle News - On the run

Fugitive Scot wanted over horrific sex attacks is tracked down in Bangkok
Andrew Drummond
Aug 22 2010

A SCOTS fugitive accused of horror sex attacks has been tracked down by the Sunday Mail in Bangkok's red-light district.

George Hoolahan, 60, has been on the run for more than 10 years after being accused of raping two 18-year-old girls.

Hoolahan is wanted by police in Scotland and England and has regularly featured on most-wanted lists since failing to turn up for trial in 1999.

But he was left reeling after we tracked him down to his Thai bolthole, where he hangs out in a sleazy sex-for-sale bar.

Stunned Hoolahan said last night: "I've been found by the Sunday Mail. I think that I'll be coming back now. "If the cops said I was to jump on a plane, I would say aye. I don't think

I'll sleep well tonight." In addition to being wanted for the alleged double rape in England, Glaswegian Hoolahan is the subject of an arrest warrant for an alleged £100,000 financial scam in Scotland.

Last week, we tracked him down to a bar near Soi Cowboy - a street notorious for go-go bars, prostitutes and "lady boy" transvestites. The fugitive's full name is George Bernard Murray Hoolahan but in Thailand, he calls himself George Murray or George Bernard.

We trapped Hoolahan - who now works as a property developer - by posing as potential clients. After arranging to meet us at the Victoria Bar off Sukhumvit Road, Hoolahan arrived wearing white trousers and a pink polo shirt bearing a machine gun logo. When we asked him if he was wanted by police over the double rape allegations, he lied: "Aye. But that's all cleared up now.

"It was only a date rape kind of thing."

We told him the deal was off after revealing we knew about the decade-long manhunt for him. Earlier, we had told the police where to find him.

The alleged rapes took place in the seaside resort of Whitley Bay but Hoolahan failed to turn up when his case was called at a magistrates' court in North Tyneside.

For more than 10 years, he has been on Northumbria Police's most-wanted list and several publicity drives aimed at finding him have been fruitless. In the same year as the alleged rapes, Hoolahan was also being hunted by police in Glasgow over an alleged swindle.

He is accused of vanishing with around £100,000 from the coffers of his Glasgow firm Fuel Negotiators.

Scottish Crime Squad detectives hunted him over the withdrawal of cash from the company account.

The controversial company were slammed by trading standards officers and politicians for cashing in on gas privatisation by charging customers £25 to negotiate low prices with energy suppliers.

A report into their nancial a airs was sent to the scal and an arrest warrant was issued for Hoolahan.

Last night, Hoolahan said he would willingly return to Scotland. But he then launched a vile attack on his alleged victims in a self-pitying whine. He said: "These girls were a couple of junkies. I was out with friends drinking and these two girls picked me up.

"They weer on drugs and we went back to my room. There were people in the next room and there was no shouting or bawling.

"It was a bit of a party. They went away the next day and they were staying in a homeless unit and my understanding is that if they were on drugs they would have been thrown out. So they blamed me.

"When made contact, I knew right away it was suspicious but I thought it was a cop. I've lost my whole life because of this.

"I miss Scotland. I miss my family. I don't know if my sisters or brothers are even alive.

"You can find anyone in the world If you hadn't found me, the police probably wouldn't have bothered their a**e."

Four years ago, police failed to catch Hoolahan in Operation Turn-Up, which led to the arrest of hundreds of wanted men. Two years later, he topped Northumbria Police's list of 833 bail-jumpers. Strathclyde Police said last night: "A warrant was issued for Mr Hoolahan's arrest in June 1999.

"So far, we have been unable to trace his whereabouts." i

Last night we passed on our dossier on Hoolahan to Northumbria Police and the Thai authorities.

Northumbria Police said: "We received a report from a member of the press suggesting that this individula was in Thailand. We are working with Interpol in relation to this report."

Until recently, Hoolahan rented a flat in Bangkok on Soi Cowboy but left owing rent. He split his time between there and Cha-am on the Gulf of Thailand, where he worked as a contractor specialising in home renovations.

His favourite haunt is the Tilac sex-for-sale bar on sleazy Soi Cowboy, a magnet for the sex tourists who flock to Thailand from the west.

The country offers tourists amazing culture, beaches, food and adventure.

But that is of little interest to the middle-aged men who travel there to spend holidays preying on prostitutes, male and femal, who are forced into the sex trade through poverty.

In recent years, increasing numbers of UK fugitives from justice have also used Thailand as a bolthole.

Earlier this month, two Britons were caught by Thai police.

Stuart Crawford, 44, is the prime suspect in the Semtpeber 2008 murder of his friend Michael Ryan in London.

John Fletcher, 66, was wanted in Cambodia on child sex charges.

The arrests were part of a crackdown on foreign criminal suspects in a bid to shed the country's image as a haven for those evading the law.

dailyrecord.co.uk

www.sundaysun.co.uk/news/north-east-news/2010/08/22/north-s-most-wanted-found-in-bangkok-bar-79310-27111086/

Originally Posted by Drummondbkk

www.sundaysun.co.uk/news/north-east-news/2010/08/22/north-s-most-wanted-found-in-bangkok-bar-79310-27111086/

LOUNGING in the midday sunshine, this is fugitive rape suspect George Hoolahan enjoying the high life in Thailand.

Originally Posted by Mid

Originally Posted by Drummondbkk

www.sundaysun.co.uk/news/north-east-news/2010/08/22/north-s-most-wanted-found-in-bangkok-bar-79310-27111086/

LOUNGING in the midday sunshine, this is fugitive rape suspect George Hoolahan enjoying the high life in Thailand.

High Life ?

I'll sleep well tonight."

Bet he will.

Between two 18 yr old gogo girls.