Teenage Briton Arrested For Drug Trafficking

[Rinrada]

Got my bags scanned on the way in to Bangers the other day,first time ever.Reconed I must have looked a bit sus.wearing a coller and tie and pulling one of those wheely trolly cases since I usually only ever travel with a tesco bag.(toothbrush plus change of UPs)

Needless to say the damm thing belongs to the wife (week before me)and was full of about 500 Mars bars (didnt know)but at least the customs guy seemed amused--paraya con Thai-chai....for her monks. Another yellow bucket job.

[Rolling Stone]

"The father of a British teenager arrested on suspicion of trying to smuggle 3,400 ecstasy tablets into Thailand"

That sounds more like it, I was wondering why he would have been smuggling ecstasy out of Thailand. I know I remember reading that the stuff was very expensive here and when I lived in England it was often quoted in the paper that the pills were rather cheap 2-3 pounds.

I doubt this kid will make it through the first year in Bang. The lights go out in a cell with 30 other guys gonna be train going on there no doubt. IMHO he will try and take his own life if not AIDs will have him before the eight year.

Keep it real!

[Axel]

Smuggling the stuff in or out, well I have no idea about the product.

Seeing the CV of this chap, doubt he will find a job anywhere.

Maybe he just wanted to make some quick cash. No sympathy there from me anymore, although I always wait for a final word after all facts are checked.

Reminded me of one fellow, former CEO of General Motorswho oopened his own car-company and tried to rescue his cashflow be selling some staff. He was released because his lawyers could proof that the FBI or DEA - agents tricked him...Probbly the rest of his money went to the lawyers.

Never heard of him anymore. He wrote a book "On a clear day you can see General Motors"

Sure no such "luck" for the chap here in BKK.

[taxexile]

axel,john de lorean was his name.

he took the british government for millions in subsidies and grants to open his factory in northern ireland. unfortunately,the sports car produced was poorly engineered,poorly designed and failed to sell. thats when he allegedly went into drugs to raise money to save the company (i.e. his reputation and ego)

as for the jug eared bum from manchester, he will learn a valuable lesson.

the £50,000 profit he would have made from this ill-fated venture could have been earned in 3 years as a hard working labourer in the uk.

[monitorlizard]

The father of a British teenager arrested on suspicion of trying to smuggle 3,400 ecstasy tablets into Thailand"

Rolling stone, you got it wrong. It wasn't the father but the son. Unless you understand but didn't bother to quote the rest.

Anyway, I think it is harsh to say he will be gang raped and die of AIDS. My understanding is that he will be in a holding cell with other foreigners. Anyway, I do not in any way condone his actons and he did do something really stupid.

I hope he cooperates with the authorities and lets them know who put him up to this. Hopefully they can arrest those in Britain. It is obivious that he could not afford to buy 3,500 pills. Perhaps he will get his sentence reduced.

I must add that I am a big fan of the justice system in Sweden. My friend's father was director of an open prison there. I just don't believe in the theory that throwing someone in jail is a deterent. It is much better to change their behavior.

Anyway, I don't see Thailand doing this for foreigners and it is not my place to tell the Thais what they should do in their own country.

However, I think it would be a good idea to do some education at the airports in England. A good idea is to put up signs listing the countries with the death penalty for trafficing in drugs. A very effective sign is to have a picture of a young kid sitting in a Thai prison. This would send a very powerful message.

Regarding this guy I do not know all the facts but I am not going to wish him death. I just don't believe in it as a punishment.

This reminds me of the times in Hong Kong when I was much younger. The guys from Nepal were smuggling gold bars into India. This was a time when gold imports were restricted and prices were quite high in India.

The Nepal gang would approach some westerner who was down on his luck and pay them a fee for carrying the gold. Many (mostly Brits) became involved in this business. A lot who were arrested were put in Indian prisons.

Stupidity is no excuse but I do think someone young deserves another chance in life.

Also about 7 years ago, an older man 60 + years(Swiss) out of Chiang Mai who had a retiement visa (10 million baht ) was caught at the Chiang Mai airport with tons of pills strapped to his body. I don't remember what kind, maybe yaba (whatever that is). The amazing part was that this guy had millions of baht in his bank account. The unlucky part was the day before his departure there was a big story in the Bangkok Post about new machines and drug sniffing dogs being deployed at the airport in Chiang Mai. The USA DEA (drug enforcement who happen to have offices here in LOS) were training the Thai border police. The fist day of operation, the Swiss man became their first customer! Of course they froze all his bank accounts here.

Also, it never amazes me that young tourists that I happen to come across in LOS seem to believe Thai sticks are still around and smoking pot is still alright. They swear that all you have to do is pay the police a small bribe (1000 baht). I hear this alot whenever I go to a beach in the south. I tell the ones I meet that they should go visit the foreigners in Thai prisons who believed the same thing. This usually shuts them up.

[Axel]

Got my bags scanned on the way in to Bangers the other day,first time ever.... was full of about 500 Mars bars...

I loved this one....

You always can say, Thai food too spicy, Mars is your food supply.

I was stopped only once, my luggage too big. Coming from Europe had included 3 bottles of Italian wine. They saw it, no comment, but found a small plastic bag, see-through with a greyish substance, about 5 grams. After I eplained that it was shampoo and showed how to wash my hair, we all had a good laugh and my feeling was, the customs guys where relieved. Me was relieved for the wine.

[ThaiAdventure]

And thaiadventure, what an amazing statement in light of last feb/mar's drug crackdown. How many extrajudicial killings of Thai people were there? in the thousands i believe. My husband's cousin is doing life for selling yaba (stupid woman), another one down the beach is currently in the pipeline after getting caught selling e and marijuana to tourists. not only has everything she owns been confiscated but she has no bail. do thai people get it easier, no they get it harder! at least most foreigners have the (albeit small) protection of their embassies.

That answers my question then. As for last Feb/Mar crackdown...I wasn't aware there was one.

[george]

Update:

"I'll plead guilty to save my life"

http://www.thaivisa.com/index.php?514&backPID=10&tt_news=610

I'll plead guilty to save my life

BANGKOK: A teenager arrested in Thailand with a large haul of Ecstasy said today he would plead guilty to the charge to save his life.

Michael Connell, 19, from Bury, was arrested at Bangkok airport on Monday.

"I'm innocent but I have been told if I do not explain the whole story I will be found guilty and get the death sentence. So I am pleading guilty to save my life," he said after being remanded in custody to Khlomg Prem jail, known as the notorious Bangkok Hilton.

He said that before his trip he bought two tubs of body cream at a Tesco store in Bury. "Somehow when the tubs were opened by Customs the pills were inside. I do not know how they got there. The tubs did not look like the same ones I packed.

"Tell my mum and dad that I love them and not to worry about me, I'm more worried about them than they should be about me."

Michael, who had been receiving unemployment benefit, added: "This was my second trip to Thailand. I came here for the ladies. I came here in April for a week."

Shock

The former Darby High School pupil could face death by lethal injection if convicted of drug smuggling. His taxi driver father Derek, of Almond Avenue, Bury, is separated from Michael's mother Maureen and did not know his son was in Thailand.

"The last time I saw him was a week ago, he came round and wanted to borrow £5,'' he said.

"About two weeks ago he came to me and said he needed £350 because he was being thrown out of his flat.

"I said `I'll give you £200 but you'll have to get the rest off your mother'. It looks like he's used the money to go to Thailand instead.

"I will support him as much as I can but if he's done something to do with drugs I can't support him because it can kill people."

Maureen, of Massey Street, Bury, said: "It's a shock, I don't know what to think, all I can say is that he is a love."

Michael's aunt Jean Connell, 55, said: "He's a lovely lad. We will do all we can to help him but it is very frightening because it's the worst place possible. I don't believe he's done it."

Source: Manchester Online

[francois]

Now if customs inside the airport wanted my stuff scanned YES one has to comply with their request. But once outside and in public, NO.

I wonder who's dude in here?

like it has been said, they are custom officers ...!

CUSTOMS!

THEY DO WHAT THEY WANT , WHERE THEY WANT INSIDE THE COUNTRY!!!

don't you know some about international custom's law about drug-trafficking?

no police in this world need a warrant to bust you down!

this the rules for drugs and terrorist threat!

sorry, for this guy?

I don't feel sorry if he knew what he was doing !

did he get setup? ... don't think so!

it's so easy to bring this excuse up!

don't forget that this new generation ike techno-party, and this goes with this kind of drug!

might be that he thought, could be a good profit to make!

bad luck!

his life is down for ever!

stupid? ho yes ... plainly!

[TizMe]

Needless to say the damm thing belongs to the wife (week before me)and was full of about 500 Mars bars (didnt know)

I got caught smuggling 24 Barrett Sherberts once.

The customs guy thought that he'd found Barlow and Chambers third accomplice when he saw all that white powder.

[huski]

He said that before his trip he bought two tubs of body cream at a Tesco store in Bury. "Somehow when the tubs were opened by Customs the pills were inside. I do not know how they got there. The tubs did not look like the same ones I packed.

i don't understand his alibi...so he bought two tubs of body cream in Bury, then spent time in Dubai, then spent time in Thailand and never opened these two tubs the whole time?

but wait, the tubs aren't the same one's he packed. so he's saying someone put them in his bag at the airport?

He was apparently on his way out from Bangkok, and the customs acted on a tip-off.

does he even know that customs was tipped off and waiting for him? numb nuts

[mrvietnam2001]

Needless to say the damm thing belongs to the wife (week before me)and was full of about 500 Mars bars (didnt know)but at least the customs guy seemed amused

Mr Rinrada, a friend of mine fedexed me about a pound of home grown "catnip" to my house in Vungtau in plain zip lock bags ( inside the fed ex box). The look on the mail carrier when I opened the box in front of him was priceless

I wasn't expecting the fed ex, and so the expression on my face was equally priceless

Rgrds

Mr Vietnam

[Begs]

I dont think he even got into Thailand, he would have flown to Thailand via Dubai, i think the report that he was trying to leave Thailand was wrong. He was caught coming in, and for a lad that was skint, and out of work, he had already been to Thailand once in April, then was coming again,............. with no money.................... who paid for his ticket?

Would a lad with no money be buying body cream....i doubt it,........... he is guilty, bang to rights,.................... if i was innocent i would not 2 days later be saying that i was pleading guilty to save my life, no forgiener is executed, he will know that, and if he dont, the British embassy people that have seen him would have told him.

[Whiplash]

I think Britain is one of the only western countries that actually sticks to the Thai courts rulings and makes their nationals actually serve the sentence upon return.

Sweden sticks to the Thai verdict also..

There is a female serving about 40 years for trying to smuggle heroin out of Thailand. She served 10+ years in a Thai prison before being transfered.

She was about his age when she got caught..

[sbk]

drug crackdown last feb:

here is an abbreviated version:

The government of Thailand allowed, and possibly encouraged, the murder of more than 2,000 suspected drug traffickers this year during a highly publicized "war on drugs," according to the London-based human rights group Amnesty International.

In a report that accuses the Thai government of "bullying its critics and ignoring abuses against the vulnerable," Amnesty says Thailand has failed to explain the sudden surge of killings that accompanied a highly publicized three-month war on drugs this year.

Between Feb. 1 and the end of April, 2,245 people were killed in a variety of shootouts and suspicious murders as Thai police launched an ambitious campaign to stamp out the drug trade.

Thaksin Shinawatra, Thailand's Prime Minister -- a policeman turned media mogul and now one of Thailand's richest men -- had promised to eliminate all illegal drugs in Thailand within 90 days. He confidently predicted he would have the job done by 9 p.m. on April 30.

Thailand has been ravaged by drugs and, according to the International Narcotics Control Board, has the worst methamphetamine problem in the world.

When Thai police launched Mr. Thaksin's war on drugs, they made more than 73,231 arrests and admitted to killing 129 drug dealers in shootouts. Twenty-six policemen died.

Another 2,090 people died under mysterious circumstances during the campaign in what police described as "drug-related killings."

At the time, local human rights advocates and a special United Nations representative raised concerns Thailand's police were carrying out extra-judicial killings. But Thai officials insisted the sudden rash of deaths was the result of criminals killing each other in turf wars.

Mr. Thaksin dismissed the complaints, saying: "When we clean up a house, dust billows. Don't panic."

In March he told reporters: "There are two places for drug traffickers: in prison or in the temple" -- a reference to the Buddhist practice of cremating their dead in temples.

In July, Mr. Thaksin announced his drug war was 90% successful and promised to wipe out the remainder by Dec. 2, a few days before King Bhumibol Adulyadej's birthday.

Amnesty International says most of the deaths remain unexplained and have gone uninvestigated.

"The government has failed to initiate independent, impartial, effective and prompt investigations into these killings," the group says. "Relatives and associates of those who have been murdered are often too terrified for their own lives to seek an investigation."

It concludes: "The Thai government appeared to condone killing of drug suspects by unknown assailants as one method of fighting the drugs war."

It notes that in 2002, Thailand averaged just 400 murders a month. But in February, the first month of the police drug crackdown, murders suddenly soared to 1,100.

The human rights group says Thailand began the crackdown by reviewing a master list of 41,914 people who had been designated as "targets for monitoring."

Police then used the blacklists to summon people to see them. In some cases, people who discovered they were on the list went in voluntarily to clear their names.

In many of the unexplained killings, the victims were murdered shortly after leaving a police station, the report says. It alleges Ministry of Interior officials warned provincial governors they had to reduce their blacklists by at least 75% or risk being demoted and transferred.

The human rights group says Thailand began the crackdown by reviewing a master list of 41,914 people who had been designated as "targets for monitoring."

Amnesty International says the process of compiling the police lists was open to abuse and could be used by local authorities and police to settle old disputes.

In some cases, people who appeared to have unexplained wealth were automatically suspected of being involved in the drug trade and were placed on the blacklists.

In one case, a married couple was shot and killed in broad daylight while selling goods from their market stall after their unusual wealth had landed them on a police list.

The husband had actually won a lottery and had not told anyone.

In another case, Somjit Kuanyuyen, a 42-year-old woman, was shot dead in front of her house last Feb. 20, a day after she had learned she had been placed on a local police blacklist.

She had immediately gone to the police station to clarify the situation and signed a document, which police reportedly told her would make her "safe."

The next day, unidentified men in a pickup truck with darkened windows drove up to her house and shot her seven times as she stood outside with her seven-year-old granddaughter.

Yesterday, Mr. Thaksin accused Amnesty International of trying to tarnish Thailand's image.

"Sometimes the agencies outside Thailand just don't know information," he said.

"They don't come to ask for information, but they criticize from outside.

"It's their job, clinging to ideology is what they do for a living," he said.

so, yeah, they are a bit tougher on thai nationals ...

[Begs]

I think Britain is one of the only western countries that actually sticks to the Thai courts rulings and makes their nationals actually serve the sentence upon return.

Sweden sticks to the Thai verdict also..

There is a female serving about 40 years for trying to smuggle heroin out of Thailand. She served 10+ years in a Thai prison before being transfered.

She was about his age when she got caught..

STOCKHOLM, July 10 — Bosnian Serb war criminal Biljana Plavsic was transferred to Sweden's largest women's prison from a remand centre on Thursday to begin an 11-year sentence in comfortable conditions that have outraged Bosnians.

Authorities at the prison, which boasts a sauna, massage room, horse-riding paddock, and offers classes in salsa dancing and photography, said she did not have to work because of her age -- Plavsic is 73 -- but could choose to twine shoelaces, sew on shoe soles, print T-shirts or do gardening to pass the time.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I bet she was glad to get home.

[george]

BRIT DENIES SMUGGLING

The British teenager accused by Thai authorities of smuggling 3,400 ecstasy tablets has protested his innocence.

Michael Alan Connell, 19, from Manchester, told Bangkok police he had no idea that two jars he was carrying contained the drug.

"The suspect denied all police charges," said police captain Wichai Wantong.

"He said he bought two jars of body cream from a department store in Manchester and he did not know what was hidden inside them."

Connell would face the death penalty if convicted of drug-smuggling.

He has appeared in court and been remanded in custody to reappear again on November 21.

Mr Wichai said he could be remanded five more times, each for 12 days, before he is formally charged.

Thailand's Customs Department has claimed the ecstasy pills were wrapped in plastic and put in two jars hidden in Connell's luggage.

The 3,400 tablets have an estimated street value in Thailand of £51,000.

--Sky News 2003-11-13

[snoophound]

Drugs into Thailand...interesting concept

Guess some of us remember the Famous Mr Asia ,Marty Johnson in the late 70s.

Lots of goodies going to AU,UK,NZ ex Thailand.

But lets think about this

Ecstasy in bulk in UK around 1-2 quid.

Ecstasy in Thailand 500 baht

So margin is good and lout boy could have bought lots of beer and girls with his share.

I reckon this guy was a mule for some other UK importers looking to live the high life for the season....i mean its obvious he had never worked a day in his life and had no future in UK.

Dont forget high season is coming and we have thousands of tatooed lager louts descending on Samui and not so much Pattaya and Phiphi.

Unfortunately Samui is touted as SE Asias Ibiza god rest its soul.

Thaksins finest have done a pretty good job on arresting the yaba flow and remember Kings bday is soon and Thailand is drug free from that date!

It will be very interesting to see if we get to the real story here.

and remember dont do drugs in thailand.

you will be caught

I have been in clubs in Bkk and Pattaya where the cops have walked in locked doors and taken urine samples and arrested falangs who are positive and given them a good scare.

If you are positive they will lock you up for a few days ,then kick you out the country with a 5 year bar on return.

[anorth_uk]

I'm not sure how anybody can feel sorry for this man,

He has no means of employment, but it is the second time this year he has visited Thaialnd. How? I have a good job and it is not that easy for me.

He got most of the money for the ticket from his father, but what did he do for accomodation/food etc

There are enough posters around airports telling you to watch your belongings at all time, and do not leave them.

I'm sure there is an equivalent to 'Boots' bodycream in Bkk, and most likely a lot cheaper.

Maybe it is time for a few farangs to be hung or injected, publicly. Maybe then this would deter others from trying it.

IMHO it is time for the Thai people to deter the yobs, otherwise Thailand will end up like a lot of European hoilday destinations - sex, drugs & rock'n'roll and all decent people, who spend more money will avoid the country. Either that and create an Amsterdam, fence them all in and avert eyes from that direction.

The above is just my 2 pennyworth, I hate to see such a beautiful country and culture end up like the rest of us in the west.

[taxexile]

IMHO it is time for the Thai people to deter the yobs,

, I hate to see such a beautiful country and culture end up like the rest of us in the west.

spot on.

although i think the public executions might be a little bit extreme.....but only a little ,mind.

[anorth_uk]

The rules are clear, if you cannot take the time, don't do the crime

Mess with drugs, get caught, accept the punishment.

Also I don't want him back here costing me extra taxes.

We are so lax on punishment in this country, problem with govenments cutting costs all the time.

[taxexile]

at least he wont be costing the uk taxpayer anything for the next few years.

if uk laws were stricter and enforced properly,he might not have embarked on this stupid enterprise. if benefits werent so easy to obtain,he might have had to get a job,and along with it, a more responsible attitude to life.

if he really has tried to bring drugs into the country,then he has brought all this upon himself and deserves whatever is coming his way.

[monitorlizard]

Please excuse the ignorance here but can someon explain to me what kind of drug ecstasy is? I have heard that a lot of the young techno crowd take this drug. This might explain why they can listen to this music?

Also, what exactly is yaba? Asked the wife but she is not sure either. What does it do? Is this a drug truck drivers take to stay awake?

Am also curious about the drug situation in Sweden. I live there for a few years in the early 80's. They did not have a drug problem there at that time. One poster said a Swedish woman was serving prison time. Has the situation changed there? If so, what a shame.

Re: the British man. I don't buy his story either. I think if he really admitted the truth and fessed up who put him up to this that Thai authorities might give him a reduced sentence. I am sure they are not buying this story either. Might piss them off and give the guy 40 years. Much better to admit how stupid he was and beg for mercy.

The guy is probably protecting people who he thinks are his friends. I doubt they will visit him in prison or will give him one second of thought after he is locked up.

[Rolling Stone]

monitorlizard, yeah that half quote I cut from the article did kind of turn the story around from father to son didn't it? Also in the last 2 days of re-cooping from my flight from the west (keep crazy hours first few days) spent a lot of time reading up on the web about the prisons in the LOS and foreigners in them. More than a few guys said the rape thing does happen especially to weak farangs. They pretty much said you have to be able to fight or be able to pay someone to protect you or you were in dire straights after lights out. Gotta remember Bang is where the worst of the worst go and rape is definitely not out of order for them. This kid does not look like he could fight his way out of a wet paper bag so me thinks he has problems.

sbk, did not mean to sound like I was feeling the kid should not get punished or that he was not aware of what he was doing with using the word "kid". Kinda just a term I use for guys his age as I unfortunately get a bit older myself

anorth uk, I too think the kid deserves exactly what is coming to him in terms of time, just a shame to see any life wasted thats all. I actually think the $$ he got from dad was for new clothes and articles he would need for the trip and the $$ for the trip came from whoever supplied him with the drugs.

Even though I have been a lowdown pot smoker my whole life I have never taken any chemicals (coke, heroin, pills etc) I don't even take aspirin which the mrs thinks is absolutely strange. My thing has always been "god made pot man made alcohol and every other drug, who you gonna trust?" I figure if I can do without in E Asia everyone else should be able to as well and anyone busted for drugs in SE Asia deserves what they get.

monitorlizard I am not sure about E, I know it keeps you awake and grinding your teeth but other than that I haven't a clue. Yaba from what I understand is similar to methamphetamines but has some psychedelic properties as well. But other than that I am clueless.

Keep it real!

[falux]

F--- Drug Dealers!

I really wonder if some bad guy really put drugs in this poor guy's luggage...

And I wonder if Santa Claus exists too!

Anyway, death penalty is a Middle Age procedure, we should gather to protect this guy's life, even if he indireclty intended to kill people by selling drugs.

What do you think?

[bluebear]

Please excuse the ignorance here but can someon explain to me what kind of drug ecstasy is? I have heard that a lot of the young techno crowd take this drug. This might explain why they can listen to this music?

Also, what exactly is yaba? Asked the wife but she is not sure either. What does it do? Is this a drug truck drivers take to stay awake?

Ecstacys proper name is MDMA - 3,4-Methylenedioxy-N-Methylamphetamine

basically it works like an endorphine locking into the "pleasure" receptors in the brain making you feel "high" and takes away your feeling of tiredness etc which is why they can dance all night ( and your sense of taste which is why they like that music! ).

The trouble is the some bodies cannot cope with this and basically overload and some people can and have died. Other reactions are high temperature, fast heartbeat...........

Yaba is basically from the amphetimine family but is cut with a whole load of ther stuff which is why so many people have adverse reactions.

Drugs & living dont mix. Dont do it.

And having read more about this guy. Unemployed, two trips this year? The guy is in it up to his armpits. We should let the Thais process him to the FULL extent of their law. If enough of these prats get executed maybe it will stop them doing it.

[lee12linda]

Was this youngen arriving at Bangkok Airport or was he going out of Bangkok Airport - maybe he was on his way to another part of the Country, which in that case, he would have had his luggage scanned. Poor kid was pulled in right and proper - whoever put this kid up to this, should do their best to do whatever they can to prevent this child from the death penalty - get him the best lawyer etc etc, ensure that people keep in touch with him while in custody, and I dont mean 'do gooders'. Dont forget this kid was living on Income Support and just last week was so skint had to borrow a fiver from his dad. Some nasty bit of work has obviously paid for him to get the drugs, probably on a promise of a wicked holiday with the lovely Thai girls - shame on whoever it was....

[meadish_sweetball]

Sorry, I just have to stick my neck out...

Public executions? I know a lot of retired people settle down here in Thailand, but seriously, were you born in the Middle Ages? Please tell me you are joking.

Executions do NOT deter people from crime, instead, they condone killing as an acceptable means of solving problems and conflicts. Just look at the big blob between Canada and South America. Are their crime rates going down???

Judging from the news articles, this guy had no future, was going down fast, and most likely would have tried this even if public executions were being held here on a daily basis.

Am I the only person here thinking that a 19-year-old guys buying two bottles of skin cream?? Sun screen would be logical, but skin cream?

Despite his immense stupidity, or maybe because of it, I feel very sorry for the lad.

[Pablo H]

Poor kid! This guy knew exactly what he was doing. He knew the rewards awaiting him had he not been caught, although I very much doubt he knew anything about the consequences of being caught. Reading about this man reminds me of many people I have met while living in England. They scrounge off the dole (social security), their family and anyone else who will help them. They will not do an honest days work. Always in for the "get rich quick scheme". Well this lad took his chance and now he has been busted. I don’t think they should kill him, but they need to make an example of him and try to get the message across to the louts, yobs, scroungers in England and any other country for that matter, that Thailand does not want them here.

I doubt the people who gave him the tabs will give supply him with a good lawyer, no way, in the game these people play there is no honour, only profit.

As I say, give him the life sentence, make sure the case is well publicised in Europe and the rest of the world and then maybe idiots like him will not take the risk in future.

[Begs]

Executions do NOT deter people from crime, instead, they condone killing as an acceptable means of solving problems and conflicts. Just look at the big blob between Canada and South America. Are their crime rates going down???

Good Point, if Thailands crime figures where as bad as The USA crime figures then i cant see too many people wanting to retire in Thailand. And USA slaughters many of its own people, in the name of the law, so maybe you are right.