New Zealander Stabbed To Death

[Jai Dee]

As an update to the original news posted on this thread:

Kiwi died protecting girlfriend

SHATTERED: Pat Healey with a photo of his son who was stabbed to death in Bangkok. Mr Healey learned of the death through the media. - Timaru Herald

A New Zealander killed in Bangkok once trained to be a priest and was trying to protect his girlfriend when he was stabbed to death in his 10th-floor flat.

The death of Leonard Healey, 32, has shattered his Temuka father, who learnt of the murder through the media.

"It can't be true," Pat Healey said yesterday as he sat beside a graduation photo of his son, who went to Thailand to teach English and to earn money to pay off his student loan.

He knew nothing of the circumstances of his son's death, and it grieved him that he learned of the fatal stabbing only when contacted by a journalist.

"Oh, God, my heart just dropped," he said.

At first he could not take it in. He called the Timaru police. They did not know, and then he checked Teletext.

There it was: Leonard Timothy Healey reportedly stabbed in a 10th-floor Bangkok flat by a friend of his girlfriend.

At one point, Healey was going to be a priest, and he attended Holy Cross College in Mosgiel.

He decided against it and switched to teaching, going to university and teachers' college.

He had been in Bangkok for two years.

"The world is full of violence. An innocent life has been taken away," Pat Healey said.

"I can't believe he's gone. It must be a joke."

Thai police captain Thanaphat Sookmee, who is in charge of the investigation into the death, told The Press that Healey was stabbed seven times after a long night of heavy drinking as he sought to protect his girlfriend.

Photos from the Thai media show emergency staff crouched next to Healey's body, lying bloodied by the bed in his apartment, where he had been watching a World Cup soccer match.

Above the bed, a poster of Lake Hayes, in Central Otago, is prominently displayed.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Winai Saisudjai, 29, a friend of Healey's 19-year-old girlfriend, Jitladda Dejyosdee.

Police said Dejyosdee was an employee of PA Tower apartments, where Healey lived.

Sookmee said she had been drinking in the restaurant of the building with the suspect on Sunday.

"She called Mr Healey at about 6pm and invited him down to join them drinking. After midnight, she was so drunk she could not stand up properly, so they all went up to watch the football match in Mr Healey's room," he said.

"When it was time to go home, Jitladda didn't want to go home at the same time as (Saisudjai) because he was trying to sleep with her.

"Jitladda and Healey went into the bathroom to discuss this and once they came out, Mr Healey told (Saisudjai) to leave, but he insisted to have her go with him, so Mr Healey pulled her away.

"They were fighting, and Mr Healey was stabbed seven times and died."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Wellington said it was too early to know when Healey's body might be released to the family.

"Our embassy is in touch with the Thai police about the progress of the investigation, but there has been no arrest," a spokesman said.

The New Zealand police liaison officer in Bangkok, Mike Bush, declined to comment. He is due to have a meeting with Thai police today.

Healey's death follows two high-profile murders of foreigners in Thailand.

Last month, an Australian nurse died after she was shot in the neck in a drive-by shooting at a crowded bar in the Thai-Burma railway town of Kanchanburi.

Thai police and Australian Embassy officials believe she was an innocent victim of a long-running local vendetta.

Thailand's coastal areas have suffered a drop in tourist numbers since the murder of Welsh tourist Katherine Horton on the island of Koh Samui on January 1 this year. Two fishermen were sentenced to death for the rape and murder of the 21-year-old British backpacker.

Source: Stuff.co.nz - 04 July 2006

[Maejo Man]

SHATTERED: Pat Healey with a photo of his son who was stabbed to death in Bangkok. Mr Healey learned of the death through the media. - Timaru Herald

The death of Leonard Healey, 32, has shattered his Temuka father, who learnt of the murder through the media.

"It can't be true," Pat Healey said yesterday as he sat beside a graduation photo of his son, who went to Thailand to teach English and to earn money to pay off his student loan.

He knew nothing of the circumstances of his son's death, and it grieved him that he learned of the fatal stabbing only when contacted by a journalist.

"Oh, God, my heart just dropped," he said.

The New Zealand police liaison officer in Bangkok, Mike Bush, declined to comment. He is due to have a meeting with Thai police today.

Source: Stuff.co.nz - 04 July 2006

That is utterly disgusting that you have to learn of your son's death from the media. Shame on you Mr Mike Bush, you need sacking

[camerata]

Police said Dejyosdee was an employee of PA Tower apartments, where Healey lived.

Sookmee said she had been drinking in the restaurant of the building with the suspect on Sunday.

"She called Mr Healey at about 6pm and invited him down to join them drinking. After midnight, she was so drunk she could not stand up properly, so they all went up to watch the football match in Mr Healey's room," he said.

Amazing naivete on her part to befriend an employee of the building and then get shit-faced with him. That's asking for trouble. And her boyfriend was taking a huge risk inviting him or allowing him up into his apartment - ultimately it cost him his life. I think most of us learned pretty fast to avoid uneducated Thai men who are drinking, especially if we are with a female.

[VanZam]

I want to know what the Thai police are doing (if anything) to catch this guy.

To learn of your sons death through the media... god I really feel for that guy. I agree with the above comment Mike Bush needs to go.

[Marc_Holland_24]

Rest in Peace,

God bless the family.

[gburns57au]

Amazing naivete on her part to befriend an employee of the building and then get shit-faced with him. That's asking for trouble. And her boyfriend was taking a huge risk inviting him or allowing him up into his apartment - ultimately it cost him his life. I think most of us learned pretty fast to avoid uneducated Thai men who are drinking, especially if we are with a female.

She was the employee of the building....

But why was she drinking in the restaurant with this Thai friend of hers when her boyfriend lived upstairs.

Something still doesnt fit and a lot of unanswered questions still.

I agree that it is a terrible way to find out about a loved ones passing. The NZ embassy needs a good kick up the rear.

[davethailand]

I want to know what the Thai police are doing (if anything) to catch this guy.

To learn of your sons death through the media... god I really feel for that guy. I agree with the above comment Mike Bush needs to go.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Winai Saisudjai, 29, a friend of Healey's 19-year-old girlfriend, Jitladda Dejyosdee.

What more can they do?

[Siripon]

As I said on the thread that was closed down, she claimed the Thai guy was her boyfriend and the Kiwi fancied her. So then why did she agree to watch the World Cup with theKiwi?

She's 19, a young girl, I suspect she felt flattered to be the centre of attention for two men.

[britainmal]

She was the employee of the building....

But why was she drinking in the restaurant with this Thai friend of hers when her boyfriend lived upstairs.

Something still doesnt fit and a lot of unanswered questions still.

I agree that it is a terrible way to find out about a loved ones passing. The NZ embassy needs a good kick up the rear.

This shows you can't trust these Thai women.(Thai Rak Thai) The other strange thing is when the Thai girl saw the Thai guy pull out a knife on the NZ guy why did she not hit the Thai guy with a bottle over the head or do something. What did she do just stand there. The other thing is why did the NZ bloke try to fight a Thai guy with a knife. I blame the the Thai Girl also besides the dirt bag Thai guy.

Edited July 4, 2006 by britainmal

[Heng]

^ah yes, the inevitable conclusion when the facts don't support the more romantic "defending his girl/guy/house/property" theories. In the end, the victim likely made a bad choice in whom to trust and likely had little understanding of the culture he was immersed in. A dangerous combination in any country.

[Donnyboy]

my deepest sympathies go out to the family over this terrible tragedy.

And am also embarrassed over my country's local consulate for failing to inform the family.

May you rest in peace Leonard.

[StateSix]

She was the employee of the building....

But why was she drinking in the restaurant with this Thai friend of hers when her boyfriend lived upstairs.

Something still doesnt fit and a lot of unanswered questions still.

I agree that it is a terrible way to find out about a loved ones passing. The NZ embassy needs a good kick up the rear.

This shows you can't trust these Thai women.(Thai Rak Thai) The other strange thing is when the Thai girl saw the Thai guy pull out a knife on the NZ guy why did she not hit the Thai guy with a bottle over the head or do something. What did she do just stand there. The other thing is why did the NZ bloke try to fight a Thai guy with a knife. I blame the the Thai Girl also besides the dirt bag Thai guy.

So you are saying that ALL Thai women are untrustworthy? If not, what did you mean by "these Thai women"?

Maybe she didnt hit the Thai guy with a bottle as you suggest, because she was scared and didnt want to get stabbed and killed also. In the earlier report it also said she was very drunk.

I agree that the father finding out from the media was very wrong. However do we know if the liaison officer was informed of this case? He many not have wanted to comment at the time because he was investigating what went wrong.

[Payboy]

Amazing naivete on her part to befriend an employee of the building and then get shit-faced with him. That's asking for trouble. And her boyfriend was taking a huge risk inviting him or allowing him up into his apartment - ultimately it cost him his life. I think most of us learned pretty fast to avoid uneducated Thai men who are drinking, especially if we are with a female.

As someone already mentioned on another thread, some men assume that because a girl is with a farang, she is "easy" so "why shouldn't she sleep with anyone else?". Unfortunately, among the vastly uneducated Thai population such men are not so difficult to find.

RIP Timothy Healey

[meadish_sweetball]

Police said Dejyosdee was an employee of PA Tower apartments, where Healey lived.

Sookmee said she had been drinking in the restaurant of the building with the suspect on Sunday.

"She called Mr Healey at about 6pm and invited him down to join them drinking. After midnight, she was so drunk she could not stand up properly, so they all went up to watch the football match in Mr Healey's room," he said.

Amazing naivete on her part to befriend an employee of the building and then get shit-faced with him. That's asking for trouble. And her boyfriend was taking a huge risk inviting him or allowing him up into his apartment - ultimately it cost him his life. I think most of us learned pretty fast to avoid uneducated Thai men who are drinking, especially if we are with a female.

Indeed so. It is a matter of survival, at least in Bangkok - perhaps not as much in the provinces. I feel safe drinking with the uncles in wifey's village - even though I don't like it that much.

I happened to be introduced to a large group of foreigners on a temporary stint in Bangkok just as I came here. We were all spread out over accommodations all over the city, and we learned a lot from each other's mistakes. A girl who got too familiar with her apartment guards and the motorcycle taxis in her soi nigh escaped a rape attempt by them one night. She was very shaken, and so were the rest of us. After that we learned to keep a healthy distance.

[thankuverybig]

the problem with carrying a knife is that if you push the right buttons with the knife carrier,then a fair percentage are able to use it on somebody in the heat of the moment,especially if you throw alcohol into the equation.

also if you dont speak thai very fluently its possible that you dont pick up bad vibes until it boils over.

[Scott]

I think a lesson to be learned here is "2 is company, 3 is a crowd." In a situation like this, they would have been better off to invite a few more people up to watch the game and made it a real party. Either that or 1 less.

A lesson in life, a lesson in Math.

[StateSix]

I think a lesson to be learned here is "2 is company, 3 is a crowd." In a situation like this, they would have been better off to invite a few more people up to watch the game and made it a real party. Either that or 1 less.

A lesson in life, a lesson in Math.

What a ridiculous statement. You are seriously saying that you cannot go to a bar and watch football with your gf and one of her friends? How could he possible predict that he would end up getting stabbed to death.

Have you never been for a drink with your friend and his gf or bf?

[qualtrough]

I could be wrong, but I read the articles in Thai Rath and I don't recall the girlfriend saying that the Thai man was or had been her boyfriend. From recollection, one article said that she worked in the building and starting drinking in the restaurant with the Thai man, who was the boyfriend of a girlfriend of hers. After that she invited her NZ boyfriend down and they eventually went up to the room to drink. I seem to recall that the article said she had gone out with the deceased for something like two months.

Terrible the way the father had to learn about it. I imagine people from NZ will be wondering just what their diplomatic staff do here.

In retrospect it is easy to see that this was a prescription for disaster, but none of us were there and know exactly what went on. Furthermore, when I look back on my younger days and even not so younger days I can recall situations that could have turned out quite differently and not in my favor. There but for the grace of God...

Apparently he taught in some elementary schools (pratom). Sad day too for his students to be told that their teacher had been murdered.

Finally, it seems pretty clear that the murderer is not anyone with the type of connections that would prevent their being apprehended and/or found guilty, so I would hazard a guess that it is only a matter of time before he surfaces.

I am not a big fan of the Thai justice system, but I would say that the apprehension and conviction rates for those murdering farangs probably rivals or exceeds those of some other Western countries. I don't understand those who appear to feel that local authorities don't care. In most cases extraordinary efforts are made to apprehend the criminals in high-profile cases like this.