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Aussie Murder Suspect Faces Thai Compensation Talks

Australian truck driver Simon Carman, 45, could receive a substantially reduced prison sentence if he is convicted of murdering Thai teenager Tunchanok Donhomla, 17, in Pattaya and reaches a compensation agreement with her family under Thai law. Carman is being held at Pattaya Remand Prison after being charged with murder following the discovery of the teenager’s body, concealed in a suitcase left in long grass near railway tracks.

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Carman, from Perth’s southern suburbs, was arrested at Bangkok’s main international airport, while police alleged he was preparing to leave Thailand on a flight to Australia. He denies murdering Tunchanok, known as Cake, and claims he acted in self-defence. Police have said their investigation remains ongoing.

According to police sources cited by the Daily Mail, discussions over financial compensation for the victim’s parents, Thongchai Donhomla and Oradee Bussarakum, are expected to form part of the legal process. The sources stressed that compensation does not prevent prosecution, but may be considered by the court alongside a guilty plea and expressions of remorse when deciding any sentence.

One police source said the family could be asked what level of compensation they would accept, with negotiations continuing until an agreement is reached. The source gave one million baht, about AU$43,000, as an example figure, noting it represents around eight years’ wages for someone earning the provincial minimum wage per day.

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The same source claimed that a guilty plea could reduce a sentence by 50 per cent, while a compensation agreement accepted by the victim’s family could carry significant weight during sentencing. They suggested that, in such circumstances, a convicted offender could potentially be released after as little as seven years. Under Thai law, however, compensation alone does not guarantee a reduced sentence, with the final decision resting with the court.

Prison officials told the Daily Mail that Carman has shown no visible emotion since his arrest and has not received visits from family, friends or members of the local expatriate community. He has been transferred to the hospital wing of Pattaya Remand Prison and is being housed separately from the main prison population for safety reasons.

The Daily Mall reported that authorities said Carman can be held at Pattaya Remand Prison for up to 84 days while detectives continue gathering evidence. Police have stated that he is cooperating with the investigation.

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Pictures courtesy of Daily Mail

Related story

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image.png Adapted by ASEAN Now Dailymail 4 July 2026

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Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
11 minutes ago, Andyfez said:

Most Isaan parents know quite well why girls go to Pattaya.

And are ready to receive money from their daughter the moment they return.

This is why many girls say it is too expensive to go back home.

In the minds of their friends and family ,there is little shame in having sex with strangers as long as its for money,

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
2 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

Were you born that pathetic or did it take years of training ?

he's been training his whole life, How else would he be so accomplished

sambum Ruby Member

sambum

Advanced Member

Guilty until proved innocent? How come we can see his face all over the pictures?

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
52 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

For those who do not know anything about Thailand...Money #1 in this country,,,,ok. Remember that.

Money is pretty much "number 1" everywhere, The concept is just more overt here

JerryM Gold Member

JerryM

Advanced Member
6 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

There are several here in surin too, what's your point?

She doesn't have to go to Pattaya to get a tattoo and her parents have never suggested that she was away from her home in Kalasin other than the trip in question.

sqwakvfr Platinum Member

sqwakvfr

Advanced Member

Compensation from a suspect to a victim is common in S. Korea as well. In SK significant compensation can avoid criminal prosecution. The suspects work history in AUS seem spotty and inconsistent at best. One of the Aussie media outlets even reported he was on disability(this has not been confirmed). Where would someone like this get hold of $43,000 AUS dollars? Suspect is now 46 so he might not survive a decade in a Thai prison. A suspect like this is a prime candidate for an "accident" as a form of prison justice. Do Thai jails and prisons have isolation cells?

Ralf001 Star Member

Ralf001

Advanced Member
3 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

Compensation from a suspect to a victim is common in S. Korea as well. In SK significant compensation can avoid criminal prosecution. The suspects work history in AUS seem spotty and inconsistent at best. One of the Aussie media outlets even reported he was on disability(this has not been confirmed). Where would someone like this get hold of $43,000 AUS dollars? Suspect is now 46 so he might not survive a decade in a Thai prison. A suspect like this is a prime candidate for an "accident" as a form of prison justice. Do Thai jails and prisons have isolation cells?

I read that he recieved a sizable insurance payout from a work accident.

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
2 minutes ago, JerryM said:

She doesn't have to go to Pattaya to get a tattoo and her parents have never suggested that she was away from her home in Kalasin

Remind me, where in Kalasin was the body found?

True she would not have to leave her province to get tattooed, but generally speaking homely village virgins do not get tattoos , in the same way that they rarely drink or smoke not exactly proof reasonably indicative as far as I'm concerned

Luuk Chaai Platinum Member

Luuk Chaai

Advanced Member
3 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

Disgusting post , how about empathy and trying to understand so he can be rehabilitated

how about .. don't feel sorry for some sick twisted **** that "allegedly" wanted to cut the price in half and offed her intstead. then stuffed her in a suitcase and basically threw her body out in the garbage...

rehabilitated is the wrong choice of words.. should be more like "composted"

JerryM Gold Member

JerryM

Advanced Member
4 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

Remind me, where in Kalasin was the body found?

Alley behind 17 moo 12 meuang.

Luuk Chaai Platinum Member

Luuk Chaai

Advanced Member
2 hours ago, JerryM said:

That was maybe her first trick ever as she only been there for one week.

doubtful! odds are she was no newcomer

Luuk Chaai Platinum Member

Luuk Chaai

Advanced Member
3 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

I know many Thai girls in Pattaya working in the bar scene/sex industry.

Their parents don't they are selling their bodies, they've told their parents that they the are working in Big C, Lotus's etc.

Most families in Thailand are poor, they have to send their daughters for work

doubtful .... otherwise everyone of them would own a bridge that was for sale ...

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
16 minutes ago, JerryM said:

She doesn't have to go to Pattaya to get a tattoo and her parents have never suggested that she was away from her home in Kalasin other than the trip in question.

"other than....." a hastily edited post , certainly not the one i responded to

Luuk Chaai Platinum Member

Luuk Chaai

Advanced Member
1 hour ago, JensenZ said:

Do you think most of these freelancers are sent to work by their parents? It's disgusting that you would make that assumption without knowing the girl or her family.

hmmmmm where could these girls have learned that trade "before" traveling to said area

JerryM Gold Member

JerryM

Advanced Member
4 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

"other than....." a hastily edited post , certainly not the one i responded to

That's the only one you're gonna get.

JerryM Gold Member

JerryM

Advanced Member
7 minutes ago, Luuk Chaai said:

doubtful .... otherwise everyone of them would own a bridge that was for sale ...

According to reports from her parents and local media, the June 2026 trip to Pattaya was her first time traveling to the city. The 17-year-old—widely known by her nickname "Cake"—lived in Kalasin with her father and stepmother.Before traveling to the coast to "see the sea" with a friend, she had previously spent her time in her home province of Kalasin, where she sometimes helped her parents sell garlands or fruits by the roadside.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-06-28/australian-man-charged-with-thai-teens-murder-addresses-family/106852274

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member

Ok here's a suggestion, let him think he can buy his way out, take all his money and give it to the family, then hang him or lock him up for life anyway ...... That should please most people ?

Cabradelmar Gold Member

Cabradelmar

Advanced Member

The family should be compensated as a civil matter, but not as a way for for psychopath to get a reduced sentence in a criminal matter. Criminal proceedings in Thailand are bizarre. Apologize, a few wais, a little grovelling, and a cash payout, and you get set free early. Effed up!

sqwakvfr Platinum Member

sqwakvfr

Advanced Member
20 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

I read that he recieved a sizable insurance payout from a work accident.

Thanks. So he might have something to negotiate with after all? But the video of his apartment in P

ats looked small and it looked a real mess. I wonder if he blew the money? I also read form another AUS media he initially offered the girl 1000 Baht but only wanted to pay her 500 and this may have angered Cake? I mean 1000 is barely $30 USD and either he could not afford it or was unwilling to pay it?

EVENKEEL Senior Member

EVENKEEL

Member
31 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

Were you born that pathetic or did it take years of training ?

GG is a lovely man with a heart of gold.

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
5 minutes ago, Luuk Chaai said:

hmmmmm where could these girls have learned that trade "before" traveling to said area

They start off doing it with their brothers mates for 20bt a pop, then once they realise that farangs pay 1000bt a pop and may even buy them a house ,its off to pattaya they go with their parents blessing

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
5 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

Thanks. So he might have something to negotiate with after all? But the video of his apartment in P

ats looked small and it looked a real mess. I wonder if he blew the money? I also read form another AUS media he initially offered the girl 1000 Baht but only wanted to pay her 500 and this may have angered Cake? I mean 1000 is barely $30 USD and either he could not afford it or was unwilling to pay it?

its like shopping at a market few pay the initial asking price, you can't hold that against him

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
8 minutes ago, Cabradelmar said:

The family should be compensated as a civil matter, but not as a way for for psychopath to get a reduced sentence in a criminal matter. Criminal proceedings in Thailand are bizarre. Apologize, a few wais, a little grovelling, and a cash payout, and you get set free early. Effed up!

If you think 500bt and a wai will clear his problems you are mistaken

Gecko123 Platinum Member

Gecko123

Advanced Member

I have seen a case where a Thai wife avoided jail time for the murder of her husband in a negotiation between the wife, her family, and the husband's family. The wife killed her adulterous husband, but with the agreement of the local police (who no doubt received a cut), the police report labelled the killing as self-defense, which not only allowed the wife to avoid jail time, but enabled her to collect on a life insurance policy, which was used to compensate the husband's surviving parents. Another motivation for entering into the agreement was that the couple had two small children, and had the wife gone to jail, the elderly grandparents would have been burdened with their care. As a result, the case never went to trial.

While I was aware that this type of settlement was sometimes negotiated at the local police level, I am surprised by the suggestion that a Thai criminal court would agree to greatly reduced jail time in exchange for a payment to the victim's surviving relatives, and I'm wondering whether this, in fact, is considered acceptable procedure in the Thai court system.

Cabradelmar Gold Member

Cabradelmar

Advanced Member
5 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

If you think 500bt and a wai will clear his problems you are mistaken

Did you even read the article? Police sources are saying 1m baht and a confession could get his sentence reduced (to a mere 8 years total).

JJ-Thailand Silver Member

JJ-Thailand

Advanced Member
46 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

17 year olds make the decision every day , don't underestimate them

They do make daily decisions but are more likely to screw up or being influenced by others.

grain Gold Member

grain

Advanced Member

So where's the dosh coming from to pay this compensation? The guy's on a Centerlink support pension, he was living in a hovel, walking around in shorts & flipflops, picking up cheapo freelancers from the streets, and quibbling over 500 Bt.

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
3 minutes ago, JJ-Thailand said:

They do make daily decisions but are more likely to screw up or being influenced by others.

its a little unfair to her to suggest that she "screwed up"

BilllyGOAT Silver Member

BilllyGOAT

Advanced Member

If a foreigner in Thailand commits a heinous murder and is released after only seven years instead of serving a life sentence, simply by paying a small amount of money to the victim’s family, consider the message that would send to the rest of the world about the low cost of murder in Thailand.

I do not think they could ever allow that to happen because it would further damage Thailand’s credibility and any perception of a reliable rule of law. So the article suggesting he might be able to secure a very reduced sentence by simply opening his wallet sounds pretty far fetched.

Bday Prang Star Member

Bday Prang

Advanced Member
2 minutes ago, grain said:

So where's the dosh coming from to pay this compensation? The guy's on a Centerlink support pension, he was living in a hovel, walking around in shorts & flipflops, picking up cheapo freelancers from the streets, and quibbling over 500 Bt.

Well again , just wait and see, you have no idea what he is worth , many wealthy people live frugally , many people with little money live beyond their means, Shorts and flip flops are common here so is negotiating over price

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