[49] Wai Phyo was also charged with stealing Miller's phone. However, a lawyer for Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo told the BBC that the pair had not admitted their guilt when their death sentences were commuted. Samui Times defended its reporting in an online post. We had one day on Koh Tao, it was really hard.". "They won't come forward because they know something is going to happen to them," he added. Coincidentally, pictures of Bernd with a snake were to be found online. [10], Witheridge and Miller travelled and arrived on the island separately on 25 August. The body had to be identified using dental records and previous X-rays. Our kids all died on Koh Tao 'death island' - cops claim they were accidents but we think they were MURDERED Aliki Kraterou Published: 13:58, 19 Mar 2022 Updated: 15:34, 19 Mar 2022 The. Koh Tao ''Turtle Island'' or Ko Tao is an island in Thailand and is part of the Chumphon Archipelago on the western shore of the Gulf of Thailand. [3] The murders were the first cases of homicide on the island in over eight years. [54] They argued that the defendants intended to kill Miller, using a hoe to hit him multiple times on the head. Book Koh Tao Cabana, Koh Tao on Tripadvisor: See 884 traveller reviews, 2,154 candid photos, and great deals for Koh Tao Cabana, ranked #14 of 194 hotels in Koh Tao and rated 4 of 5 at Tripadvisor. The relevant standard in this case was ISO 17025. Her mother, Michele claimed that Elise used a fake name of 'Elise Dubuis' to check into the Triple B Bungalows next to Mae Head Pier on Koh Tao. "We asked for a copy of the CCTV footage and they said it was destroyed. Koh Tao murders: 'Asian man' seen on CCTV sought for q uestioning Probe into murder of two Britons on Koh Tao Manhunt on Koh Tao after tourists found brutally murdere d on beach British tourists murdered, stripped on Koh Tao beach Topics: Bangkok, Features Join the Coconuts conversation with a comment. The families of Miss Witheridge and Mr Miller are now returning to the UK. [1] Receiving half a million visitors each year,[1] Koh Tao is especially popular with backpackers and known for its marine life and scuba diving. British woman, Christina Annesley, 23, was found in a room at the In Touch Resort on Jan 21, 2015. Hi there! A member of staff told police he heard four to five cries of someone in shock approximately 10 minutes . Elise had been traveling around Asia for two years, and before her death had been living at a yoga and tantra retreat on Koh Phangan. That is awful. Nick Pearson, 25, was found floating in an island bay, at the foot of a 50ft drop on New Years Day 2014. He originally moved to the island in the late 1990s but left in 2016 after becoming frustrated with the corruption and hostility towards foreign business owners. They told me 'you need to stop reporting on it if you want to stay here, they are getting fed up with you now, No one put a gun to my head but I was told by multiple sources that if I didnt stop reporting on it thered be trouble- it wasnt safe for me anymore.". 8.4K views 2 years ago Dedication to 20 foreigners who died on Koh Tao. DESPITE its flawless beaches and crystal seas, Thailand has earned a deadly reputation after 60 Brits died there between 2014 and 2016 alone. Photo from Sept 15 showing a police officer questioning Christopher Alan Ware, who has re-emerged as a leading suspect in the murder of a young British man and woman on Koh Tao on Monday in. Police concluded she wanted to break a deep-diving record at more than 24 meters. Thai police say the man on the left matches the one seen acting suspiciously on CCTV A Scottish man is being kept in protective custody in Thailand after a photo he took could identify the murderer. Rockefeller Audio 2022. There were apparently no signs of robbery or attack in the room at the hotel where Alexandr had been staying. [95] The mayor of the island, Chaiyan Turasakul, announced a new police station and staffed it with 40 full-time officers, compared to five previously. Irregular Burmese migrant workers were now required to register with the police in an attempt to discourage illegal workers and prevent bribery. "We'll go with the flow as much as we can. While collecting forensic evidence, tourists and locals were allowed to walk on the beach. New Zealand's Minisrty of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) says 185 Kiwis are registered as being in the flood affected areas of Koh Samui and Koh Tao and parts of southern Thailand, including . Death sentences in Koh Tao killings commuted. View our online Press Pack. The families dont believe a word of the Thai police investigation. The hoe was then used to knock Witheridge unconscious, after which the defendants used force to hold her down and took turns raping her, before killing her with the hoe. The more I was getting involved, the more I was reporting, the more upset the Thais would get," she added. "They did a visual post-mortem - just by looking at him they said he died of a broken neck and that his face was looking towards his back. Thai beach deaths DNA evidence . Thai police are investigating their deaths as . In September 2014, two European backpackers, Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were found murdered on Sairee Beach on Thailands island of Koh Tao. 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. He announced that he had "ordered all security-related agencies to track down those who are behind the Myanmar demonstrations". 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. In 2018 in Cancn alone, there were 540 murders. The island of Koh Tao, off the coast of Thailand, is often described as a paradise. World put on alert as deadly virus spreads, Hundreds dead in horror cough syrup tragedy. On Tuesday, new details emerged as police investigated the death of a wealthy billionaire industrialist and his wife on Ko Tao last Friday. We admit that in the past, there was a mafia there that took advantage of tourists. "At first, we accepted what the Thai authorities had said because we knew no different. She was dedicated, ambitious and would have made an amazing difference to the lives of many families through her chosen career as a Speech and Language Therapist. The families have opened up in Sky's new documentary, Death On The Beach, saying they believe Thai police covered up what really happened to their loved ones. We have done our own investigation and we are sure she was murdered. She was also part of the Sathya Sai Baba cult and lived with a self-proclaimed 'guru'. Nationwide News Pty Ltd 2023. There were no signs of a struggle or rape or other human DNA. We've all heard about the 2014 backpacker murders of two British tourists in Koh Tao, Thailand. Get latest News Information, Articles on Thailand Vs Indonesia Odi Live Streaming Updated on December 27, 2018 19:20 with exclusive Pictures, photos & videos on Thailand Vs Indonesia Odi Live Streaming at Latestly.com - Page 18 [94] She suggested using identification wristbands for tourists to improve safety, but the idea was quickly scrapped. At least eleven European tourists have died or disappeared there since 2014 and it is now described as Death Island or Murder Island. How are they ever going to get closure and justice if they dont know what happened? Aug 2014 - Dec 20217 years 5 months. While his death was ruled as suicide cops could not explain why his hands are tied behind his back. My Facebook page is called KOH TAO DEATH ISLAND. Investigators had no theory to explain her unexpected stopover on Koh Tao on her way back to the mainland and the capital Bangkok. Witheridge was travelling with three other friends, and Miller with two others. UK reporter Suzanne Buchanan has thoroughly investigated the cases alongside the deaths of Belgian Elise Dellemange, Swiss Hans Peter Suter and French Dimitri Povse -who also were also found dead under mysterious circumstances. In accepting the 2nd retrial plea, sought by the family of Hiromu Sakahara, who died of illness aged 75 while serving his term in 2011, the Osaka High Court said . Koh Tao--a small island in the Gulf of Thailand, surrounded by pristine beaches, swathed in sunshine, and a mecca for tourists, divers and backpackers. [6] Miller had just completed his undergraduate degree in civil and structural engineering at the University of Leeds and was starting a masters degree. [11], An autopsy revealed that both victims were hit by a hard object resulting in head and face wounds. They followed the animal and discovered that it had been feeding on Elise's remains, which were found among rocks behind the Tanote Family Bay Resort. Dimitri Povse 2015; 1. Samyak Choudhary; and It is believed they were tortured, then burned, before being chopped . "I only had my suspicions, his body came back to me without a wallet or anything on him. I was good friends with a few and they were all restaurant/bar owners. One of the men Mau Mau resided nearby. Read about our approach to external linking. The two are charged with the murder of David Miller, 24, and Hannah Witheridge, 23, on . Ten days after he went missing from Sairee Beach on Koh Tao, the body of Swiss tourist Hans Peter Suter, 44, was washed ashore at Talay Ngam beach in Lang Suan district of Chumphon province on Tuesday, November 18, 2014. The family claimed the circumstances surrounding his death and the local police's refusal to co-operate with them have led them to believe the death is "suspicious". Speaking at the court, Mr Miller's father Ian said he and his wife Sue had come "with an open mind", adding that it had been an emotional time for the family. However, no toxicology report was conducted. Police major general, Surachate Hakparn, said in an interview that the police have cracked down on crime syndicates on Koh Tao since the backpackers double killing. However, the event did not materially affect tourism to the island over the following years. Both entered through the Ranong Province, allegedly without presenting themselves at a port of entry and without possessing a passport. The father-of-ones family in Ingolstadt, Germany, said at the time they did not believe the authorities' claims that hedied of heart failure or had been bitten by a snake.. (Washington D.C., February 27, 2023) - The Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) in Riyadh, used to prosecute "terrorism" cases in Saudi Arabia, has charged six former prominent SCC judges and four former judges of the High Court, the country's supreme court, with "high treason" - a crime punishable by death in Saudi Arabia - in its first secret hearing of the case on February 16, 2023, said .