Australian Murder Suspect Arrested In Thailand And Extradited

[Buchholz]

Wanted man arrested in murder hunt

One of Australia's most wanted men, who is suspected of killing a young Perth father of two, has been captured after almost nine years at large. Anthony Carl Prestidge was extradited from Thailand last night, arriving with major crime detectives at Perth Airport at 7.45am this morning, after spending nine months on remand in Bangkok's notorious Klong Prem prison following his arrest on minor immigration breaches. Mr Prestidge has been charged with the willful murder of his brother-in-law Andy Arthur Ball in 2002. Speaking to The West Australian shortly before his expected extradition, Mr Prestidge said he wanted to return to Australia to tell his side of the story in court. "I want to come back to Australia to clear my name. It's been a long time," he said from behind bars in Bangkok.

The capture marks the end of a nine-year search which was launched soon after 24-year-old Mr Ball was found dead in his Ellenbrook home on September 12, 2002. Police allege Mr Prestidge left Australia after killing Mr Ball by driving in Mr Ball’s car to Perth International Airport and boarding a flight to Indonesia. Over the past nine years, appeals have been made globally through Interpol and overseas police forces for information about the whereabouts of Mr Prestidge, now aged 49. Speaking in prison on Tuesday, Mr Prestidge told The West Australian that he had made a new life in Thailand since leaving Australia in 2002 and had a partner and six-year-old son. "I've been in Thailand all this time," he said.

Continues:

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/breaking/9317270/wanted-man-arrested-in-murder-hunt/

The West Australian - May 5, 2011

[Buchholz]

From Interpol Wanted Poster :

PRESTIDGE, Anthony Carl

Present family name: PRESTIDGE

Forename: ANTHONY CARL

Sex: MALE

Date of birth: 20 May 1961 (49 years old)

Place of birth: EDINBURGH / SCOTLAND, United Kingdom

Language spoken: English

Nationality: Portugal, United Kingdom

Physical description

Height: 1.70 meter <-> 67 inches

Colour of eyes: BROWN

Colour of hair: BROWN

http://www.interpol.int/public/Data/Wanted/Notices/Data/2004/45/2004_21045.asp

Edited May 5, 2011 by Buchholz

[Buchholz]

An earlier notice...

Britain's most wanted

31 March 2004

List of individuals most urgently sought by Metropolitan police :

Anthony Carl Prestidge

Police in Australia want to speak to him in connection with a murder inquiry. On September 10 2002 Prestidge's brother-in-law, Andy Ball, was murdered in Perth, Australia, Prestidge, 42 from Kensington, flew out of Perth that evening and returned to the UK. Prestidge originates from Edinburgh.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2004/mar/31/ukcrime1

[Buchholz]

From last year...

Police launch worldwide criminal hunt

6th July 2010

AUSTRALIANS are being asked to help catch 60 of the world's most wanted criminals as part of a global manhunt.

A supplied image made available on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 of Scottish and Portuguese national Anthony Carl Prestidge, as seen in 2004, who is wanted by INTERPOL for allegedly murdering his brother in law Andy Arthur Ball in Perth, Western Australia. Police allege that Prestidge arrived in Perth unannounced just weeks before Mr Ball's death in a surprise visit to see his sister Angela Denise Ball and flew out of the country later on the afternoon following murder. Prestidge's subsequent movements and current whereabouts are not known.

Australians are being asked to help catch 60 of the world's most wanted criminals as part of a global manhunt designed to put serial killers, gangsters and drug smugglers behind bars. Interpol and Crime Stoppers International launched the operation on Tuesday, appealing to ordinary citizens across the world to help apprehend the fugitives.

http://www.news-mail.com.au/story/2010/07/06/police-launch-worldwide-criminal-hunt/

[Buchholz]

Suspected murderer extradited from Bangkok

Video of his arrival in Perth:

http://video.perthnow.com.au/1909538934/Suspected-murderer-arrives-in-Perth

A man suspected of killing a Perth father of two almost nine years ago has been captured in Bangkok and is expected to be charged with wilful murder later today. Anthony Carl Prestidge, 49, was wanted over the death of his brother-in-law, Andy Arthur Ball, in 2002 and was extradited from Thailand, where he had spent nine months in custody for minor immigration breaches.

He arrived under police guard at Perth Airport this morning and is expected to be charged with murder later today. Mr Ball, 24, was found dead in his Leopold Turn home in Ellenbrook, although police have refused to reveal the cause of death. Police allege that Mr Prestidge, who was born in Edinburgh but holds dual British and Portuguese citizenship, arrived in Perth just weeks before Mr Ball's death, in a surprise visit to see his sister.

It will be alleged that Mr Prestidge killed Mr Ball and drove to the airport in the victim’s car before purchasing an air ticket and boarding a flight to Bali. During the following nine years, Australian detectives unsuccessfully attempted to locate Mr Prestidge in the United Kingdom and South East Asia. Mr Prestidge is expected to appear in the Perth Magistrate's Court this week.

Continues:

http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/man-expected-to-be/story-e6frg13u-1226050225441

Perth Now - May 5, 2011

.

Edited May 5, 2011 by Buchholz

[Buchholz]

One of Australia's most wanted men, who is suspected of killing a young Perth father of two, has been captured after almost nine years at large.

"I've been in Thailand all this time," he said.

From Interpol Wanted Poster :

Any members know him in the 9 years he's been here?

[dunkin2012]

An earlier notice...

amazing!!!..

9 yrs to catch him.... very efficient , the process

a couple of things I didn't get from these articles.

Where about in Thailand he was?

why did it take that long to capture him?

how the guy with to kids was killed?..............i read the 1st article that the police, Western Australia didn't want to reveal it.

[Buchholz]

An earlier notice...

amazing!!!..

9 yrs to catch him.... very efficient , the process

a couple of things I didn't get from these articles.

Where about in Thailand he was?

why did it take that long to capture him?

how the guy with to kids was killed?..............i read the 1st article that the police, Western Australia didn't want to reveal it.

1. Didn't specifically say where he's been in Thailand (hence my forum query). They did say he was arrested in Bankgok.

2. People that don't want to be found can be extremely difficult to find.

3. Two possible reasons for not revealing details of the murder victim.

a ) Overly gruesome

b ) Pertinent to not wishing to compromise evidence known only to the police and murderer.

[londonthai]

"I want to come back to Australia to clear my name"

if he wanted to clear his name he should not run from the murder place and call police. Now he is forced back to australia and it doesn't look good for him.

after 9 years on the run probably his passport was expiring and no consulate would issue him a new one - hence emmigration problem in thailand. That on assumption he did not use some fake pass

Edited May 5, 2011 by londonthai

[Buchholz]

Grieving family lived in hope

Anthony Carl Prestidge's arrest and extradition marks the end of a nine-year police investigation which has spanned the globe. The search for Mr Prestidge - who was wanted in connection with the death of 24-year-old Andy Arthur Ball in 2002 - reached South-East Asia and Europe through Interpol and police appeals. Mr Ball's grieving family has clung on to the hope that one day they will have answers to their questions about how and why he died.

As the years have passed, Mr Prestidge, who is suspected by police of killing Mr Ball, has remained out of WA, police say. Now all that has changed with Mr Prestidge's arrest and extradition to WA this morning. Detectives charged him today over Mr Ball's death. Despite worldwide appeals for information about Mr Prestidge's whereabouts since 2002, police had failed to find him and the trail had gone cold. The breakthrough came on August 3 last year when Mr Prestidge was arrested by Thai police and charged with minor immigration offences. When the Thai authorities realised that Edinburgh-born Mr Prestidge was wanted for questioning about an alleged murder in Australia, they alerted WA police.

The development is the culmination of years of fighting by Mr Ball's family to keep the investigation into his death moving forward. Mr Ball's older sister Paula Thompson has been the driving force behind those efforts. Since her younger brother was killed, she has travelled the world to ensure he was not forgotten. She put pressure on police in WA and overseas to actively continue their search. Such was her determination that her brother did not become another "cold case", Mrs Thompson went to London to see Scotland Yard detectives and to Thailand to visit Australian Federal Police officers in Bangkok.

Continues:

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/wa/9317353/grieving-family-lived-in-hope/

The West Australian - May 5, 2011

*Note: The continued article in the link references journalist and Thaivisa member AndrewDrummond being involved earlier in this case.

Perhaps Mr. Drummond would be so kind as to reply regarding that and today's event.

.

Edited May 5, 2011 by Buchholz

[londonthai]

final score , thailand 1 australia 0

thailand unintentionally harboured him for 9 years, doesn't look nice for the thai police and emmigration. Australia couldn't do more than issuing request for interpol.

what is new to me, that interpol would deal with murder cases - the victim probably wasn't a high ranking state official or politician

Edited May 5, 2011 by londonthai

[Buchholz]

"I want to come back to Australia"

Suspect relieved at escaping jail misery

The dirt, noise, oppressive heat and unpleasant smells assault the senses in the Bangkok Remand Prison, and that is just in the area where outsiders visit the inmates. Visitors can only imagine that conditions in the cells, where up to 40 prisoners are crammed into one room and where disease is rife, are worse. After a few hours in this part of Klong Prem jail, it is not hard to see why extradition to Australia would seem a better option.

Ironically nicknamed "Bangkok Hilton" because of its dire conditions, the Klong Prem facility has been Anthony Carl Prestidge's abode since his arrest in Thailand last August on alleged minor immigration contraventions. The West Australian visited the 49-year-old Scot shortly before he was extradited to WA this morning. Separated from me by thick glass and iron bars, Mr Prestidge shouted into a telephone over the echoing prison racket, speaking publicly for the first time since WA Police named him as one of the State's most wanted.

Although reluctant to go into any details about any alleged involvement he may have had in Andy Arthur Ball's death, he said he was pleased to be returning to Australia. He wants to tell his side of the story in a courtroom. Mr Prestidge also revealed what life was like in the prison. "It's horrendous," he said. "There is TB (tuberculosis) and HIV everywhere. There are 30 to 40 prisoners in one room."

Continues:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/05/3208296.htm

The West Australian - May 5, 2011

[ib1b4]

I do find it bewildering due to the fact that the Thai authorities were notified of Prestridges presence five years ago.

[Jirapa]

"I want to come back to Australia to clear my name"

if he wanted to clear his name he should not run from the murder place and call police. Now he is forced back to australia and it doesn't look good for him.

after 9 years on the run probably his passport was expiring and no consulate would issue him a new one - hence emmigration problem in thailand. That on assumption he did not use some fake pass

I've never once been asked to present my passport in this country even on a traffic violation. Show your drivers license, pay your fine or back hander and get your licence handed back. It wouldn't be very difficult to hide out in this country if you didn't want to be found. Don't believe he has an "official Thai wife" though as that's one thing where you need official letters from your embassy but with a sample they could be forged quite easily. If Bin Laden managed to hide in Pakistan only 50km from Islamabad next to a military academy with the CIA and whole world looking for him plus a 20 million USD price on his head I don't think it's that far fetched that a minor murderer (the Aussie) could fall off the radar!

[londonthai]

"There is TB (tuberculosis) and HIV everywhere"

surely the faster he left thailand the more life he has after release from the australian prison and a smaller chance of getting hiv and aids, which are deadly. With a good layer in 5-10 years time he might be a free man, most probably those 8 months at hilton would not be counted to his sentence

[Wallich]

Nowhere in the articles is it stated he has been in Thailand for 9 years....

"after spending nine months on remand in Bangkok's notorious Klong Prem prison following his arrest on minor immigration breaches"

[chickenslegs]

I think we should have a Thaivisa "Most Wanted" gallery - as so many of them seem to end up here.

The police are missing a trick if they're not circulating these 'wanted' photographs amongst the expat forums in all the likely countries.

[TechnikaIII]

It took even longer to find Ronald Biggs, the Great Train Robber. For years I passed through the neighbourhood where he had made his "new life" in Melbourne, Australia. Even then he got away and, as you know, spent the rest of his healthy years in Brazil. But now, I wonder about the other 2 farang in my rural town of 9000. I am the only one who walks and talks openly in the community, my girlfriend (ex-girlfriend) being a prominent business person, I'm no secret, and have nothing to be secretive about. I tried talking to one of these other two, when he showed up at the shop where I was looking in vein for a litre of milk. He waved me off, faining some sought non-comprehension, deafness? Mute? It was quite a show, a brief, 5 second performance and he was gone. Now, .. I wonder who he really is. But you know what? I don't wanna know. ;-)

Edited May 5, 2011 by TechnikaIII

[otherstuff1957]

I wonder what his Thaivisa name is?

[jimbeam1]

"I want to come back to Australia to clear my name"

if he wanted to clear his name he should not run from the murder place and call police. Now he is forced back to australia and it doesn't look good for him.

after 9 years on the run probably his passport was expiring and no consulate would issue him a new one - hence emmigration problem in thailand. That on assumption he did not use some fake pass

He want's to go back to Australia to clear his name? I rather liked that one.

jb1

[MILT]

At least he will get his day in a proper court.

[jimbeam1]

I think we should have a Thaivisa "Most Wanted" gallery - as so many of them seem to end up here.

The police are missing a trick if they're not circulating these 'wanted' photographs amongst the expat forums in all the likely countries.

That requires thought + actually doing something and there's no tea money in it?

jb1

[maprao]

I think we should have a Thaivisa "Most Wanted" gallery - as so many of them seem to end up here.

The police are missing a trick if they're not circulating these 'wanted' photographs amongst the expat forums in all the likely countries.

Probably land 50% of Thai visa members in jail

Or just publish members pictures as their avtar and that could be the gallery!

ps before you flame or report me for those without a sense of humour I am joking ok?

Edited May 5, 2011 by maprao

[Jirapa]

"There is TB (tuberculosis) and HIV everywhere"

surely the faster he left thailand the more life he has after release from the australian prison and a smaller chance of getting hiv and aids, which are deadly. With a good layer in 5-10 years time he might be a free man, most probably those 8 months at hilton would not be counted to his sentence

At least there's some good treatments around for aids and TB which can considerably prolong life. Murder is murder and very quick so if he is guilty I haven't got much sympathy for him

[jimbeam1]

"I want to come back to Australia to clear my name"

if he wanted to clear his name he should not run from the murder place and call police. Now he is forced back to australia and it doesn't look good for him.

after 9 years on the run probably his passport was expiring and no consulate would issue him a new one - hence emmigration problem in thailand. That on assumption he did not use some fake pass

I've never once been asked to present my passport in this country even on a traffic violation. Show your drivers license, pay your fine or back hander and get your licence handed back. It wouldn't be very difficult to hide out in this country if you didn't want to be found. Don't believe he has an "official Thai wife" though as that's one thing where you need official letters from your embassy but with a sample they could be forged quite easily. If Bin Laden managed to hide in Pakistan only 50km from Islamabad next to a military academy with the CIA and whole world looking for him plus a 20 million USD price on his head I don't think it's that far fetched that a minor murderer (the Aussie) could fall off the radar!

You don't need to do Immagration then? Also don't have a bank account? Never stayed at an Hotel? What drivers licence do you hold?

jb1

[Jirapa]

I think we should have a Thaivisa "Most Wanted" gallery - as so many of them seem to end up here.

The police are missing a trick if they're not circulating these 'wanted' photographs amongst the expat forums in all the likely countries.

That's actually a sensible idea

[whybother]

Nowhere in the articles is it stated he has been in Thailand for 9 years....

"after spending nine months on remand in Bangkok's notorious Klong Prem prison following his arrest on minor immigration breaches"

It's clearly implied.

Mr Prestidge told The West Australian that he had made a new life in Thailand since leaving Australia in 2002 and had a partner and six-year-old son. "I've been in Thailand all this time," he said.

[jdinasia]

I wonder why he wasn't in handcuffs?

[lowerlakeside]

Nowhere in the articles is it stated he has been in Thailand for 9 years....

"after spending nine months on remand in Bangkok's notorious Klong Prem prison following his arrest on minor immigration breaches"

" "I've been in Thailand all this time," he said.

So……….2011-2002 = ….

Hope this helps

[Jirapa]

"I want to come back to Australia to clear my name"

if he wanted to clear his name he should not run from the murder place and call police. Now he is forced back to australia and it doesn't look good for him.

after 9 years on the run probably his passport was expiring and no consulate would issue him a new one - hence emmigration problem in thailand. That on assumption he did not use some fake pass

I've never once been asked to present my passport in this country even on a traffic violation. Show your drivers license, pay your fine or back hander and get your licence handed back. It wouldn't be very difficult to hide out in this country if you didn't want to be found. Don't believe he has an "official Thai wife" though as that's one thing where you need official letters from your embassy but with a sample they could be forged quite easily. If Bin Laden managed to hide in Pakistan only 50km from Islamabad next to a military academy with the CIA and whole world looking for him plus a 20 million USD price on his head I don't think it's that far fetched that a minor murderer (the Aussie) could fall off the radar!

You don't need to do Immagration then? Also don't have a bank account? Never stayed at an Hotel? What drivers licence do you hold?

jb1

You've obviously missed the point! If I was on the run I wouldn't do immigration I'd be hiding out either in a big city or a small village, I'd be using a bank account using someone else's name, most hotels never ask for ID if you pay cash or your with a Thai who presents their ID and gets the room in their name and I'm on an EU driving licence that's never been check over the radio nor in a police station for a traffic violation nor a roadside stop. I don't need to hide but it's not difficult to do so!