The ABC news media have crunched all the numbers and figure he'll get 7 years based on a 1 Mil Baht compensation agreed on and plead guilty to all charges.

This is an extreme travesty of justice IMHO.

Wots the betting?

Oops wrong country!

21 minutes ago, bdenner said:

Oops wrong country!

OK but this is good:

One step the alleged killer of Thai teen found in suitcase could take to escape death penalty

By Ella McIlveen, News.com.au

Published July 3, 2026, 1:30 p.m. ET

https://nypost.com/2026/07/03/world-news/alleged-murderer-may-not-escape-death-penalty-even-if-pays-compensation-to-family/

14 hours ago, Celsius said:

I don't know who's more evil..... the Aussie Brit, or the parents who sent her to "work"

Exactly.

I was saying this just a few days ago and got downvoted.

There's always a price in this country.

Your 17 year old child is killed and stuffed in a suitcase and left somewhere like trash. How much can we profit from this? 1 million baht, of course!

Let me just puke!

God, there is not much humanity here, that's for sure.

Just when I thought this case couldn't get any worse.

I suppose they want compensated for loss of earnings.

If it had "happened" when he was driving a car, he would have got off scot-free, with the family having to pay for and mount a legal case to get compensation from the insurance.

56 minutes ago, Dogmouth said:

Its easy to say don't take the money , but when you are extremely impoverished their daughter has gone sadly..

Look at the photo.

How old do you think they are? Working aged people, right?

She was only 17. They are probably in their 30s, 40s, or maybe 50s.

Why can't they work? Why would they need her to sell hr body, give her soul, and her life to send money "home"??

They amazing 'Thai family institution' we have all heard so much about, ladies and gentlemen.

8 minutes ago, NewGuy87 said:

Look at the photo.

How old do you think they are? Working aged people, right?

She was only 17. They are probably in their 30s, 40s, or maybe 50s.

Why can't they work? Why would they need her to sell hr body, give her soul, and her life to send money "home"??

They amazing 'Thai family institution' we have all heard so much about, ladies and gentlemen.

Those here who are setting themselves up as arbitrary judges of the family for seeking compensation have no conceptual notion of the processes and representation of justice in Thailand. You're judging them by your own limited notion of western concepts and it seems you've learnt nothing about Thailand.

I've been through this, supporting a bereaved family in pursuit of justice, and financial compensation is a lot more that just the money, which is the only bit you can see in this.

28 minutes ago, NewGuy87 said:

They amazing 'Thai family institution' we have all heard so much about, ladies and gentlemen.

One dirt poor Thai family we are talking about. Their daughter is gone. What you are reading is speculation from sensational reporting from Australia.

You are painting with much too wide of a brush.

This guy is a psychopath, come on!

Someone who kills a young person and chops her up into a suitcase should not be able to get a reduction in his sentence.

I know this won't change anything but I protest this!

7 minutes ago, marin said:

One dirt poor Thai family we are talking about. Their daughter is gone. What you are reading is speculation from sensational reporting from Australia.

You are painting with much too wide of a brush.

You ever lived in a small rural village here?

I have.

I know what they are all like. It aint just one family. This is typical mentality here.

And they are likely home owners with a million in farmland.

Dirt poor, my a...

13 minutes ago, Shocked farang said:

This guy is a psychopath, come on!

Someone who kills a young person and chops her up into a suitcase should not be able to get a reduction in his sentence.

I know this won't change anything but I protest this!

A nutter for sure that should and will serve some damn serious time here.

My comment to you was you questioning Thai parenhood in general based on this one tragedy. Simply not called for in any way.

10 hours 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.

Im sure you know them very well

13 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

Poorer than the Philippines?.

What's that got to do with the price of fish?

A bit more background regarding the suspect. Apologies if someone has already posted this.

6 hours ago, Rockyroad said:

They are poor and she is dead. Jail doesnt help them.

Money paid means lesser sentence for him … that’s not justice for the girl. Unless of course they only viewed her as the Golden Goose?

11 hours ago, Scouse123 said:

I just can't see that happening, and I've spent a fair bit of time looking into how these agreements actually work.

Yes, if he pleads guilty, the death penalty could be reduced to life imprisonment. But the evidence against him appears overwhelming, so a conviction seems highly likely.

Given the international attention this case has attracted, I think the Thai authorities will want to demonstrate that violent crime against visitors is dealt with firmly. I can't see a judge handing down a dramatically reduced sentence simply because compensation is paid.

As for serving his sentence in Australia, that's not how it works. Under the prisoner transfer arrangements, he can't simply be sent home after a few years. He would first have to serve a significant part of his sentence in Thailand before he could even apply for a transfer.

Any transfer would also require the agreement of both the Thai and Australian governments.

For those reasons, I don't believe there's any realistic prospect of him being back in Australia after seven years, and certainly not avoiding a lengthy spell in a Thai prison.

Sounds plausible and I hope you're right. Thai prison is a million miles away from Australian and western Jail conditions for sure.
Ultimately he cannot be rehabilitated.
It's not just about punishment but keeping all people safe from dangerous creatures like him.

11 hours ago, Reddavy said:

Parents covering their tracks. I’d put money on them sending her there to make money in bars but being she should be 20 years of age to do that work they are making up the story. The bar is in trouble also for giving her the job.

She wasn't working out of a bar due to her age. She was freelancing on the street.
Which is why she wasn't in the know, amongst the bar girls: who to avoid, which are dodgy punters etc. He was shunned by them because he had a strangling fetish. She was out of town, young, naive and or chancing it.
She was restricted to street pick up due to being underage for the bars.

15 hours ago, Cabradelmar said:

From whom? The guilty man, that's who. Who do you think would pay compensation to the victims family?This is all conjecture anyway, The AU dirtbag has not made any offer of his own (to my knowledge). But he has admitted guilt. Which in the Thai criminal courts can get one a hefty reduction in sentencing. Which he doesn't deserve IMO. He's a psychopath, and a known problem in Western Australia. He already had his gun license revoked in WA, which tells you that he is either no longer "a fit and proper person" or a a risk to public safety (which he has now demonstrated in spades here in THA).

He won't be making any offer anyway. He's been living in an industrial warehouse in Australia. So basically homeless. Existing on disability welfare with a bit of casual work on the side and living very cheap in Thailand. He has no money.

7 hours ago, AlexRich said:

Money paid means lesser sentence for him … that’s not justice for the girl. Unless of course they only viewed her as the Golden Goose?

She was in Patts working the street

22 hours ago, Woke to Sounds said:

No amount of $$ can bring Cake back.

Disgusting that compensation would even be considered to factor in a reduced sentence for the Aussie scumbag.

The parents ought to show a moral backbone and refuse $$.

Aussie needs the electric chair more than the family needs the cash.

💯%

I suspect you could be wrong on thia, Compensation is a common event here. What families will do for a bit of money can often surprise.

29 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

The parents ought to show a moral backbone and refuse $$.

This is Thailand. They are mostly invertibrates.

30 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

I suspect you could be wrong on thia, Compensation is a common event here. What families will do for a bit of money can often surprise.

Nah, it doesnt surprise anyone who has been here a while

"Even though I am poor, I will not trade my daughter's dignity for money," Mr Thongchai said.

3 hours ago:

In short:

The father of a Thai teenager allegedly murdered by an Australian man says the family wants the "legal process to take its course" and does not want to be paid compensation by the accused.

The Thai legal system allows people facing criminal charges to pay victims or their families as a show of remorse, and the compensation payment can significantly reduce jail time.

Tunchanok Donhomla's family has remembered her as a "fun, cheerful person" despite having an "unfortunate" and "tough" upbringing.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-07-05/teenager-in-thailand-murder-case-remembered-by-family-friends/106875680

"Even though I am poor, I will not trade my daughter's dignity for money," Mr Thongchai said.

"I love my daughter so much."

The family could still pursue separate civil action.

12 minutes ago, JerryM said:

"Even though I am poor, I will not trade my daughter's dignity for money," Mr Thongchai said.

Sorry, but where did he think the money was coming from?

Did he really believe she had dignified employment to (presumably) support the "family"?

49 minutes ago, cranki said:

"Even though I am poor, I will not trade my daughter's dignity for money," Mr Thongchai said.

I really hope he stands by that sentiment!

When ole Simon goes to prison, he won't last long no matter his prison sentence. Whether he's given a reduced sentence and the family get some money or no money and he gets life, ole Simon will be killed in short order by the other inmates.

23 hours ago, NorthernRyland said:

Wasn't she sending money home to them and they all knew about it? Loads of people living in poverty in that same region but not all of them send their daughters into prostitution which is dangerous for a number of reasons.

True but there is pressure from the family to send money back home. Some go to the entertainment areas, some to factories and some may start a small shop or selling things. That profession is a respected way for her to send money home.

24 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

When ole Simon goes to prison, he won't last long no matter his prison sentence. Whether he's given a reduced sentence and the family get some money or no money and he gets life, ole Simon will be killed in short order by the other inmates.

Hopefully you're right but not too short order I hope, let him have a few years of misery first.

Compensation first.

Death penalty second.

He murdered a good girl with her whole life ahead.

If I were him, I wouldn't pay, honestly; he will need that money if he has it to stay alive in the prison. Half sentence just means less time for the inevitable to happen.

17 hours ago, Rockyroad said:

They are poor and she is dead. Jail doesnt help them.

That's the way it is here, justice is measured in baht, but what message does it send to the world?

This message: "If you have a few dollars in the bank, come to Thailand, do whatever you want, and if it's against the law, and you are caught, buy your way out of a prison sentence." Most common example is drunk riding / driving and killing a Thai. Going rate is 1 million baht.

News of this case has gone global. If the family take money for a reduced prison sentence, it shows to the world the Thai justice system can be circumvented by paying money. Not a good look.