[90][91], The 2014 murders, along with other deaths and disappearances of tourists, led to British tabloids labelling Koh Tao as "Death Island". Killed in Thailand: British tourists Hannah Witheridge and David Miller. People come to Thailand to get away from it all. A royal decree said the sentences had been reviewed to commemorate King Vajiralongkorn's birthday on 28 July and to "illustrate the king's clemency". They said Wai Phyo found the mobile phone dropped on the beach, and so he kept it. Hannah Witheridge, 23,front left, from Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, and David Miller, 24, middle right, from Jersey, were brutally killed on the island of Koh Tao last September They also raised concerns with the absence of legal counsel prior to the confession, as well as difficulties with translation and interpretation. Despite so many alleged loopholes in the investigation procedure, the court found Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo guilty of murder and sentenced them to death on December 24, 2015. [51], The prosecution also claimed the defendants entered the country in violation of the Immigration Act of 1979. Hannah Witheridge, 23, from Norfolk and David Miller, 24, of Jersey were bludgeoned to death with a wooden hoe as they walked back to their hotel room late at night. Defence lawyers claimed. But in Thailand, the police perform the entire process. The investigators raided Mau Maus home on October 2 and arrested one of the men named Zaw Lin. Naturally, a pall of silence engulfs this clannish, cliquey atoll, owing in no small part to the legal standing of its foreign contingent. In a statement, Ian and Sue Miller, who have campaigned against the death penalty, said: "We are grateful to His Majesty the King of Thailand for showing his clemency to the murderers of our son David. . "[56] Attempts to appeal the sentence to the High Court in 2017 were unsuccessful. [62] They were both also charged with entering the country illegally, to which Wai Phyo had already confessed. Her autopsy report showed she had been raped and killed by blows to the head. Irregular Burmese migrant workers were now required to register with the police in an attempt to discourage illegal workers and prevent bribery. One of Wai Phyos former employers, who saw him soon after Sept. 15 and noticed no perceivable change in his demeanor, has refused to be a character witness or be named by TIME. Migrant workers convicted of murdering Hannah Witheridge and David The convictions were mired in controversy, with supporters of the two men arguing they had been framed because their initial confessions were made under duress. [85][15][86] Prayut said that British and Burmese government representatives were "limited to observation" and had to "respect our processes". Case 220: Hannah Witheridge & David Miller. [15] Public prosecutors initially rejected the report, asking for "certain flaws" to be fixed, more information to be supplied, and for the report to be made "more succinct". He announced that he had "ordered all security-related agencies to track down those who are behind the Myanmar demonstrations". "We hope that these two murderers will now spend a very, very long time in jail where they cannot harm other families and will have time to reflect on the consequences of their acts.". Mr Miller's family said they were "grateful" to the Thai king. Foreign nationals were also immediately blamed for the crime, with a police spokesman even claiming,Thais would not do this. Their primary focus lay on migrant workers, with many alleging the authorities tortured them with scalding boiled water during interrogations. The family said it had brought to a close a "lengthy and disturbing period" where activists on social media had attempted to influence justice in Thailand and public opinion elsewhere. After unsuccessfully trying to find their possessions, they walked towards Mau Mau's house through the shortcut, which resulted in them being caught on CCTV. Like the Millers, the Witheridge family initially offered no comment on worries about a miscarriage of justice after the arrested men said they had been tortured to extract confessions. [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. During the trial, the prosecution also claimed Davids stolen phone was discovered smashed at the home of a friend of Zaw Lins. [47] Thailand's National Human Rights Commission attempted to investigate the allegations, but police representatives did not appear at four scheduled meetings. The main suspect in the crime is a fellow British backpacker, according to The Guardian. To be able to work on Koh Tao, illegal Burmese migrants paid a 500-baht ($15) bribe each month, plus another 500 baht if they want to use a motorbike without a Thai driving license. Then, most stupidly, the two suspects suddenly "admitted" to the crime, after having been found with bruises. [42][48] Amnesty International stated that Thailand "must initiate an independent, effective and transparent investigation into mounting allegations of torture and other ill-treatment by police". Thailand: Koh Tao Murder Trial Exposed. Ugly Truth of 'Land of Smiles It was said the pair went swimming on the same beach earlier that night, and when they got out of the water they found their clothes had disappeared. (modern). 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. Death Island on Apple Podcasts Millers family also travelled to Koh Samui, the larger island near Koh Tao where the trial was held, to see some of the evidence. Mr and Mrs Miller, from St Helier, said: "Every moment we miss our son. Their senseless deaths sparked international outrage and raised questions about j The team were only allowed to spend two hours on Koh Tao and did not meet with the suspects or defence. Many believe the true culprits are local, and these suspicions were fueled after a Scottish friend of Miller fled the island claiming to have had his life threatened by local thugs. Drugs play a key role. Hannah Witheridge was a college student at the University of Essex and lived there, according to her Facebook page. Murdered backpacker's family fight against of attackers death So, if youre interested in finding out more about the case, including the perpetrators identities, heres what we know. [44] In December 2014, the suspects were each indicted on five charges: premeditated murder, killing to conceal a criminal offence, rape, illegal entry into Thailand, and staying in the country without permission. VideoThe secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, LGBT troops take love for Eurovision to front line, Why an Indian comedian is challenging fake news rules. Burmese bar workers Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Tun were found guilty of murder in 2015. Forensic evidence is processed independently in the U.S. or U.K. and many other jurisdictions around the world, safeguarding a proper chain of custody. The family of a British backpacker killed in Thailand have welcomed a decision to commute his murderers' death sentences to life in prison. These illegal workers often reside with friends on the island, making it difficult to identify them. Hannah metDavid Miller by chance when they and their friends stayed in adjoining rooms of the Ocean View Bungalows, a small backpacker complex overlooking the white sand sweep of Sairee beach on the Thai island of Koh Tao. Vrady Hannah Witheridge a Davida Millera: Kde jsou te Zaw Lin a Wai Two Burmese workers were sentenced to death in 2015, after being found guilty of killing David Miller, 24, of Jersey, and Hannah Witheridge, 23, of Norfolk. [87][88] The protests angered Thailand's prime minister, who believed the demonstrations were a plot "instigated" to hurt the government. Death Island on Apple Podcasts Thai court upholds death penalty over murder of two Britons [59] The defence struggled to find members of the public willing to testify at the trial, as many feared retribution,[1][60] hence their alibi was not considered convincing by the court. Video, The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, commute his murderers' death sentences to life in prison, Banana artwork in Seoul museum eaten by visitor, Explosion derails train in Russian border region, JP Morgan snaps up troubled US bank First Republic, NFL player's daughter, aged two, drowns in pool, Indian 'killer' elephant relocated to tiger reserve, Trump says 'great to be home' on visit to Scotland, Ding becomes China's first male world chess champion, Father tells how gunman opened fire on Texas home. Is climate change killing Australian wine? One of the three suspected individuals was identified as Mau Mau, a local living nearby. The island is known as a haven for scuba divers. [5][40] The commutation was welcomed by Miller's family. "But in the end the truth has been revealed," the couple added. [1][31] Pornthip Rojanasunand, a Thai forensic scientist, testified at the trial that the crime scene was poorly managed. 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. Magazines, Or create a free account to access more articles, This Septic Isle: Backpackers, Bloodshed and the Secretive World of Koh Tao. The second man, Wai Phyo,[a] was believed to have left the island by boat the previous night. All rights reserved. In a statement, Ian and Sue Miller, who have campaigned against the death penalty, said: "We are grateful to His Majesty the King of Thailand for showing his clemency to the murderers of our son David. How Did Steven Beirnes Die. [2] In 2014, the island had a population of around 5,000 locals. Attempts to appeal the sentence failed, but a royal decree was issued by King Vajiralongkorn in 2020 commuting the death sentences to life imprisonment. They were seen buying beer and cigarettes before taking a shortcut route to Sairee Beach. [53], The prosecution's case focused on findings of the police and medical examiner, with an emphasis on the DNA evidence. David worked as an intern in the St Helier offices of the Australian mining company Consolidated Minerals. Thailand murders: Hannah Witheridge and David Miller anniversary Theories abound on Koh Tao about who killed Miller and Witheridge. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, "This Septic Isle: Backpackers, Bloodshed and the Secretive World of Koh Tao", "Links revealed between police and migrants on Koh Tao", "Police: Still no suspect in killings of Britons on idyllic Thai island", "Thai king commutes death sentence of UK pair's killers", "Thailand: Hannah Witheridge 'raped by two men before being killed', "Thailand backpacker murders: David Miller and Hannah Witheridge - two lives cut short", "Thailand murders: Victims' families talk of senseless killings", "Hannah Witheridge's family pay tribute to "beautiful, intelligent, loving young woman", "British backpackers murdered in Thailand named as Hannah Witheridge and David Miller", "Thailand murders: Amnesty International call for police torture probe", Koh Samui Provincial Court No. Two weeks later, two illegal Burmese migrant workers were blamed for the deaths, primarily on the basis of DNA evidence, and confessed following an hours-long interrogation. [1][4][24] Witheridge's body indicated she had been raped. However, the defense counsel argued all the evidence against the defendants was circumstantial, and the police had no known eyewitness to the murders. [4], The victims of the murders were Hannah Witheridge, a 23-year-old from Hemsby, England, and David Miller, a 24-year-old from Jersey, a Crown Dependency. Pensions and incomes that would be less than optimum in Europe, say, or North America, can fund a life of carefree hedonism in Thailand. Read about our approach to external linking. The sweet reek of marijuana is commonplace even in prominent beachfront bars, while cocaine and crystal meth, known locally as yaba or crazy drug, are not hard to find, say locals. Nice and strong, grins the heavily tattooed barman. Sean McAnna (25), from Shotts near Glasgow, was a friend of David Miller, the tourist whose body was found last week on Koh Tao island along with that of Hannah Witheridge. Ringed by coral gardens and teeming with kaleidoscope shoals of tropical fish, it was primarily known, until now, for its diving. Some work on fishing boats for years without seeing land, getting passed between trawlers, catching fish, squid and shrimp for American dinner tables. [51] The defence provided a separate explanation for the events on the night. 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.Both victims had been hit several times on the head; Witheridge had been raped, and Miller had been drowned. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Koh Tao murders, which created an international frenzy when two young British tourists, Hannah Witheridge, and David Miller, were found murdered in September 2014. [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. Case 220: Hannah Witheridge & David Miller : r/Casefile - Reddit Laura Daniels, 30, died in hospital on Monday just five years and one day. Her family parents Tony and Sue, brother Paul and sisters Tania and Laura described Witheridge as a beautiful person, inside and out, saying she would have gone on to make a significant difference to the lives of many people. Sister, 30, of murdered backpacker Hannah Witheridge dies [25] There were no known eyewitnesses to the murders. Both were. RIP, Christian May (@christianrmay) September 15, 2014. [20] Both bodies were found semi-naked;[21] a pile of clothes was found nearby. David and Hannah were seen together at a local pub called AC Bar with friends on September 14th, according to reports, before they left together at 1:00 am. Wai Phyo says officers removed his clothes and left him naked in a freezing room for 20 minutes. Read about our approach to external linking. Junta chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha enraged many by hinting that the blame, at some level, lay with the attractive victims. After the court ordered the DNA to be tested again on July 10, the head of Thailands Central Institute of Forensic Science found that the DNA sample on the hoe did not match the defendants. Witheridge is a native of Great Yarmouth in the Southwest coast of England. They were at the bar with around 50 people mostly foreign tourists before they left together after 1:00 am. David worked as an intern in the St Helier offices of the Australian mining company Consolidated Minerals. On July 10, the bench again ordered the DNA to be retested, only for the police to reveal that certain key samples specifically those retrieved from the victims bodies had been used up. According to reports, they allegedly confessed to the murders, stating the migrant workers wanted to rape Hannah after getting aroused while reportedly seeing her kissing David on the beach. Magazines, Digital [48][35] A 900-page police report was produced to guide the prosecution's case, but the defence were not allowed to see the report until the trial began. [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". [1] Police revealed that the samples from Witheridge's body were used up,[62][27] but were able to provide DNA samples from the murder weapon. Most populous nation: Should India rejoice or panic? 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. A mute Burmese beach cleaner stumbled upon the bodies shortly after dawn the following morning on Sairee Beach, near Hannahs room A5 at Ocean View Bungalows. hannah witheridge and david miller The BBC reports that police in the area believe the man has already escaped Koh Tao. He added that they would if they are not beautiful., Prayuth soon backtracked on his remarks on travelers, saying, Sometimes I speak too strongly. But virtually his next breath again sought to assign blame: We have to help take care of [our nation], he said, and not let not-good people mingle with us, such as unregistered alien workers., Investigators had already steered their attention to migrant workers, via a friend of the deceased, and the son of a local headman, who were briefly considered as suspects. [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. The bodies of Mr Miller and Miss Witheridge were found on a beach on the Thai island of Koh Tao in 2014. mi.) [35][84] Despite not initially being permitted to assist with the investigation,[33] British police observers including homicide detectives from the Metropolitan Police and a forensics expert were eventually permitted into Thailand to observe the investigation. Ill never meet anyone like her. Lucy and Hannah were both receiving training to help people with speech difficulties, and Lucy said Hannah wanted to go on to work with children. "The final admittance of their guilt has allowed this act of clemency to become possible," they continued. [33][34] Over 200 individuals on the island, many of them migrant workers, were tested in mass DNA testing. It has over 100 hotels and resorts and was deemed the busiest diving centre in Southeast Asia in 2014. 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". But in December, in a statement released by the Foreign Office, they said they were confident in the Thai polices work. Lin and Phyo (also known asWin Zaw Htun)were sentenced to death for the murder of Mr Miller and the murder and rape of Ms Witheridge. [10], Witheridge and Miller travelled and arrived on the island separately on 25 August. +(91)-9821210096 | paula deen meatloaf with brown gravy. Did this woman die because her genitals were cut? [72] The Supreme Court of Thailand upheld the sentence in August 2019, stating that the police handled the case correctly and the forensic evidence was "clear, credible, and detailed". His dad, Ian Miller, said, Its quite likely David was stepping in to assist a girl in trouble. DNA was collected from these three areas and sent to a police forensics lab for analysis. One of his former teachers,Alan Hamel, reminisced, He was a young man of enormous potential and particularly a talented artist. A mute Burmese beach cleaner discovered the bodies shortly after dawn the following morning at Ocean View Bungalows. The police found a garden hoe and a wooden club nearby, which were quickly determined as the principal murder weapons. In September 2014, the 23-year-oldUniversity of East Anglia graduate, who had been studying for a masters degree in speech and language therapy. Police and court systems were hacked or taken offline in the following days, and a stash of personal information obtained from the court's servers was posted publicly. Their sentences have been reviewed to commemorate King Vajiralongkorn's birthday and to show his "clemency". Sky News reports that Miller was chopped in the back and the side of his head, Witheridges injuries were to her head. And on Koh Tao there are around 5,000 Burmese conspicuous by the golden streaks of thanaka paste, a traditional sunscreen and beauty product, garnishing their cheeks who build hotels, sweep rooms and serve drinks to the coppery throngs of tourists. [82][83] The UK government expressed concerns with the investigation, and summoned a Thai diplomat in London to discuss them. 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. Hannah was also raped. She was just a brilliant person, and she was just irreplaceable. 23 Sep 2014. Case 220: Hannah Witheridge & David Miller - Casefile True Crime The Case of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller-Death Island Thailand backpacker murders: bar workers found guilty of killing British tourists, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies.
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