Australian national Simon Peter Carman, 45, has denied murdering Thai teenager Tunchanok Donhomla in Pattaya, telling the ABC news, he acted in self-defence during a struggle in which he claims she pulled a knife.

Carman, who has been held at Pattaya Remand Prison since his arrest on June 27, said he had pleaded not guilty to all four charges against him, including murder, concealing a corpse and abducting a minor for indecent purposes.

"I have not done anything wrong. I shouldn't be here ... I do not understand what's going on," he told ABC Foreign Correspondent in his first media interview since his arrest.

Carman said he was "hoping and praying" to be released. If convicted of murder, he faces either the death penalty or life imprisonment.

Carman describes alleged struggle

Police allege Carman picked up 17-year-old Tunchanok, known to family and friends as Cake, on Pattaya's Beach Road in the early hours of June 25 before killing her and disposing of her body.

CCTV showed the pair entering the lifts at Carman's condominium building holding hands. Later footage showed Carman dragging a large suitcase from the building and carrying it on a motorcycle at night.

Two days later, police found Tunchanok's body in the suitcase near railway tracks close to Carman's accommodation. He was arrested at Bangkok's international airport while attempting to board a flight to Perth.

Carman said he met Tunchanok while she was with two friends, and that she followed him home. He said he did not know why she did so, and claimed he believed she was aged between about 25 and 35.

He told the ABC he gave her 500 baht "for nothing", after which she demanded more money and allegedly pulled a knife. Carman said he repeatedly told her to put it down during a physical struggle.

"All I was trying to do was restrain her from stabbing me," he said, adding that she eventually "went limp". He said he did not call an ambulance or anyone else because he did not trust police.

Police file to go to prosecutors

Pattaya Police Colonel Anek Srathongyoo said investigators would submit their file to Pattaya prosecutors this week. Prosecutors will then have until September 18 to indict Carman.

Police say an autopsy concluded Tunchanok died from suffocation. Colonel Anek said she had suffered a brain injury and had no other injuries, while Carman's DNA was matched to DNA found on her body.

Tunchanok's father, Thongchai Donhomla, said he wanted the harshest punishment, either life imprisonment or death, saying he was deeply heartbroken and wanted justice for his daughter.

Carman told the ABC he did not yet have a lawyer and had received no visitors other than Australian embassy officials.

The exclusive 30 minute interview was conducted under a prison guard's watch. The ABC said it was the first foreign media organisation in at least 15 years allowed to interview a foreign inmate in a Thai prison. Officials reviewed footage for security reasons and prison conditions could not be discussed.

Video and picture courtesy of ABC News

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24 August 2026

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All along, nothing he’s said or done suggests anything other than a sustained attempt to dodge accountability.

Every version of his story bends toward the same goal: paint himself as the hunted, not the perpetrator.

12 minutes ago, Jim Waldron said:

All along, nothing he’s said or done suggests anything other than a sustained attempt to dodge accountability.

Every version of his story bends toward the same goal: paint himself as the hunted, not the perpetrator.

"He told the ABC he gave her 500 baht "for nothing", after which she demanded more money and allegedly pulled a knife. Carman said he repeatedly told her to put it down during a physical struggle."

"All I was trying to do was restrain her from stabbing me," he said, adding that she eventually "went limp". He said he did not call an ambulance or anyone else because he did not trust police."

You say "every version" but so far I have only heard one. She pulled a knife and he killed her. If you can provide different versions of his story please do so.

Edited August 23Aug 23 by dinsdale

Hope the mongrel rots in hell and suffers for years to come.

1 hour ago, Georgealbert said:

Carman said he was "hoping and praying" to be released.

The guy is a psycho, needs to be put down.

The freak says he's done nothing wrong.

Death by injection ASAP

Edited August 23Aug 23 by SAFETY FIRST

Sounds like a real man ...not !

Seriously how would he get into a life threatening situatuation given his size compared to hers. Many years ago I had a bar girl pull a stanley knife on me. She was with me for 5-6 nights but never in the days. I found out that she was two timing me, so I gave her her marching orders and 500 baht for her troubles. She placed the 500 baht in her bag and pulled out the knife and tried to attack me. I grabbed her wrist and turned her around and gave her a hefty foot up the ass and told her if she didn't go I'd call the police or accidently push her down the stairs. Thankfully she went not before giving me a verbal tirade before she departed.

Deny Deny Deny Deny IDIOT - He would have more chance of seeing daylight again, possibly surviving prison and/or the needle and keeping some element of self respect in tact if he came out and at least admitted he met a teenage girl he thought was 'of age' everything went south and he ended up in a dispute over money in which things got out of hand and he ended up doing something which he can't take back and will regret for the rest of his soon to be short life. Rather than deny all responsibility, it may help his case more if he pays more attention to the crime he has committed and considers the family that he has affected it sounds like he knows a little about Thai culture where the rest of the world looking at these news reports may not where this young girl could possibly have been the main bread winner for a poor family (the morality of that is a matter for Thai culture and probably not relevant to this muppet) so showing more sympathy, condolences and offering support although possibly not 'open monetary' support may come to help him at any kind of sentencing phase for his heinous crime

Maybe the accused's lawyer if he gets one will plead insanity for him . He certainly shows signs of being mental. It may save him from the death penalty then again if he does get sentenced to death he's no loss to anyone. The parents let their 17yo daughter travel 600 kms from home, did they know what her intentions were.

4 minutes ago, Rams86 said:

The parents let their 17yo daughter travel 600 kms from home, did they know what her intentions were.

The parents here don't seem to care as long as the kid sends back some money.

2 hours ago, dinsdale said:

"He told the ABC he gave her 500 baht "for nothing", after which she demanded more money and allegedly pulled a knife. Carman said he repeatedly told her to put it down during a physical struggle."

"All I was trying to do was restrain her from stabbing me," he said, adding that she eventually "went limp". He said he did not call an ambulance or anyone else because he did not trust police."

You say "every version" but so far I have only heard one. She pulled a knife and he killed her. If you can provide different versions of his story please do so.

I've heard a few different versions. The first was the day of his arrest, supposedly from him but it's too disgusting to repeat here

She followed him home but he did not know why?

Why were they holding hands?

Earlier photos show the two of them on Beach road and in the hotel entrance holding hands. He claims she "followed" him home. If your going to lie at least get your facts straight. If he was unable to constrain such a strong girl he will get plenty of time to learn how to defend himself when he drops the soap in a Thai prison shower.

Everyone knows if you plead guilty, you get 50% off your sentence in Thailand..

Come on man the video evidence of him is a closed case...

Pleading guilty is his only remote hope of ever getting out I think.

53 minutes ago, captain_shane said:

The parents here don't seem to care as long as the kid sends back some money.

Doesn't justify some ar$ehole killing them.

Edited August 24Aug 24 by Artisi

2 hours ago, Rams86 said:

Seriously how would he get into a life threatening situatuation given his size compared to hers. Many years ago I had a bar girl pull a stanley knife on me. She was with me for 5-6 nights but never in the days. I found out that she was two timing me, so I gave her her marching orders and 500 baht for her troubles. She placed the 500 baht in her bag and pulled out the knife and tried to attack me. I grabbed her wrist and turned her around and gave her a hefty foot up the ass and told her if she didn't go I'd call the police or accidently push her down the stairs. Thankfully she went not before giving me a verbal tirade before she departed.

500 baht for 5-6 nights ?

3 hours ago, JT25 said:

Hope the mongrel rots in hell and suffers for years to come.

What if his story is somewhat true ?

He will go down in the book as the man who went to Thailand, and killed a woman because he couldn´t pay the agreed amount of 1000. What a loser!

No one's buying the story.

Allegedly Self Defense but he doesn't report it to Police. Allegedly puts the body in a suitcase and takes it and dumps it in a remote area.

Doesn't trust Police. But thinks dumping a suitcase with a body in it is going to go uninvestigated by Police.

Whatever happens it will Not bring back that young girl who was just starting her adult life.

RIP Tunchanok

Stop lying you idiot. Just shut your mouth. You did it, you got caught so cop your punishment

3 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

The guy is a psycho, needs to be put down.

The freak says he's done nothing wrong.

Death by injection ASAP

The more I think about it the moream convinced that the death penalty is too good for this low scumbag. Give him give him life and let him suffer in a Thai gaol with no royal pardons.

3 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

The guy is a psycho, needs to be put down.

The freak says he's done nothing wrong.

Death by injection ASAP

The more I think about this case the more convinced I am that the death penalty is too good for this scumbag. Give him life and let him rot in a Thai gaol with no parole or royal pardons.He said that the only contact he has had is the Australian Embassy so that tells you what his family back in Perth think of him..

3 hours ago, JT25 said:

Hope the mongrel rots in hell and suffers for years to come.

Even though at this stage he's innocent?

3 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

The guy is a psycho, needs to be put down.

The freak says he's done nothing wrong.

Death by injection ASAP

Did the prostitute freak do anything wrong? Has it been confirmed that she was completely innocent, no threats, no extortion, no attempted stabbing?

4 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Even though at this stage he's innocent?

From Thailand Penal Code:

Section 290 (Death by Bodily Harm): Causing death unintentionally during an assault, penalized with 3 to 15 years in prison.

From all it seems, this guy was not Ted Bundy luring women with intent to murder.

10 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Even though at this stage he's innocent?

Would not expect anything else from you. The mongrel is as guilty as , and you and everyone knows it.Wake up to yourself.

Total <deleted>, killed a young girl. Throw the book at this guy, get us a death penalty. Eye for an eye.

The only one who knows his motives is him. Has he done this before or was it just him picking up a girl with an intent to have sex?

Did he pick her up with dark intentions from the start? Did it have nothing to do with money as 500-1000 Baht is accepted prices here for some, and coming here he likely had already heard about it?

Did a fight start about that little sum of money, which is unlikely, and did the girl pull a knife like he said or just an argument where he grabbed her by the neck and took it all the way, not able to stop for reasons known only to him?

The fact remains if things got out of hand, and he can prove about a knife, then it was un intentional from the start and he went too far when she pulled that knife, but he should have then went to the police with his story. Did he fear no justice from local police, that he wouldn't be given a fair trial, or is he a murderer already, that this wasn't his first charade?

The other fact, hiding and disposing of her body shows guilt where he didn't want to face anything but just wanted to leave Thailand. Was he afraid of not being given that fair trial or is he a cold blooded murderer? All this is guesses, like all others here, and until the evidence comes out there's no way of telling.

If this wasn't Thailand, would justice be served differently? Of course, even though the justice system here is supposed to mirror the west, pleading guilty will get you a reduced sentence a lot easier than in the west. Is he pleading not guilty because he feels she attacked him and it was a kind of self defense, or was it just him going overboard about something minor where he couldn't or didn't want to stop? If he's guilty, it should be life in prison, as the death penalty won't be acted upon here. Him being caught might have already saved lives.

Edited August 24Aug 24 by fredwiggy

6 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

Has he done this before or was it just him picking up a girl with an intent to have sex?

There was a lot of talk on this forum earlier that maybe this guy was responsible for the 2 unsolved suitcase murders. Assuming it was the same person, that person would be a near criminal genius. Nobody still knows anything.

This guy was blunder all the way.

5 hours ago, Georgealbert said:

Carman said he met Tunchanok while she was with two friends, and that she followed him home. He said he did not know why she did so, and claimed he believed she was aged between about 25 and 35.

Saying he thought she was between 25 and 35 is the type of excuse made when accused of bringing an under age girl back to one's place, not when accused of murdering her. If she just followed him home, and he gave her 500 Baht for "nothing" then her age wouldn't matter, and bringing it up would suggest (along with the hand holding) that he did indeed ask her back, thereby placing even more doubt on the truth of his story.

1 minute ago, JerryM said:

There was a lot of talk on this forum earlier that maybe this guy was responsible for the 2 unsolved suitcase murders. Assuming it was the same person, that person would be a near criminal genius. Nobody still knows anything.

This guy was blunder all the way.

Almost every serial killers are caught, some faster than others, and seeing this is a country where CCTV is as common as rice, getting caught is easier than other places. Disposing of a body from a hotel isn't an easy thing no matter what, especially with those cameras, and him trying to leave the country is what most would do, especially that he's a foreigner that will stand out here. He could be a serial killer that's actions are fairly recent, or this could be his first.