Koh Tao islanders offer reward for clues on Brit tourist killers: Update

[harryfrompattaya]

To all posters who think 50'000 THB isn't enough,

to all the posters who think 50'000 THB is an insult,

I'm sure, moaning and belittling will not help anyone but

here is YOUR chance to make a difference, YOUR

donations in to this reward pool is highly appreciated.

Thank you

I agree.

You may send me the money so I can hold it.

[kurnell]

So the latest theory is that the killer is related to someone influential?

[mrtoad]

Make a million and then maybe, just maybe some people will think it is worth speaking out. 50k with a chance of upsetting someone influential ain't going to be enough.

Influential or not. If i knew anything i would tell anyway free of charge.

So would I, but i doubt locals or illegal immigrants would

[mrtoad]

So the latest theory is that the killer is related to someone influential?

Given the start of the investigation its almost a given.

[Credo]

So the latest theory is that the killer is related to someone influential?

The Thaivisa detectives seem to think so.

Personally, I am not so sure.

[Mudcrab]

How about 50,000 baht and a British Passport? Be well worth it.

Name the wrong name, and a new identity in a different country may be in order.

Wow...first prize and second prize

[Mudcrab]

Millions maybe... 50 thousand?? Token.

If I were a powerful local family with multiple tourist dependent business interests ? oh yea you bet I would be offering millions, its a business investment as much as anything else.

Its good business to protect your business.

yes 50k is token..... its not worth a risk to your life to talk for that amount, not even a thai farmhand. So ask yourself why a token amount ?

I bet we could raise that in a few days from TV members here and god knows how much if people started collecting for a fund.

How about it TV and george ? how about a reward fund for the killers and conviction ?

Do we care enough here ? Id like to think so and id happily donate a few k bht np

We are members of the PHA (Phangan Hotels Association), this is a government recognized group that was set up about 2 years ago, as a forum for owners to voice their views to improve business and quality of tourism for both tourist and owners alike. We pay an annual fee (about 4000 baht per year, which is nothing in a business sense), and the idea is that we get together monthly and come up with ideas. I can think of hundreds of initiatives... but they are still very narrow-minded, so we sit back a bit. Every "new idea" they have is prefaced with "Full moon party...", such as FMP marathon, FMP food festival, FMP Buddhist learning experience (!!!).

But you are right. I will gladly toss in 10,000 baht to a fund that does real things to help tourists. Mostly signage and community tents to give advice... our customers are VERY receptive to getting good advice. But all they get is BAD advice. As we all know, it is in everyone's best interests for the tourists to have positive memorable and happy experiences... the benefits are directly related to our bottom line. (Koh Tao, is just like Koh Phangan, but one tenth the size, and a few years behind... mind you they get pretty well the same volume of tourists as Koh Phangan.) Anyway, I am overly verbose in these threads, because it is of the utmost concern to us, and is firmly placed in the front of my mind. Sorry to crap on.

Not overly verbose at all. You made your point quite well. It's all about your business and your income.

[kjhbigv]

Personally, I reckon it is way too late to do anything, the murderer(s) would be well on their toes by now.

The focus should be on finding those two in the CCTV running and walking off. What is happening about that? Have pictures been circulated, is it on Thai TV with details of a reward?

What about the stuff about the guy cracking on to the girl prior to the murder in the bar? Surely, he must be easy to find, to have a "chat" with? What about the others in the bar and the friends of the two murdered? Now they are back home, do they have anything to add, now they are out of the frame?

The sad thing is, this could easily have been solved had the island been locked down first day and the integrity of the crime scene had remained intact. Alas, I fear this will go down as unsolved.

[mojorison]

Millions maybe... 50 thousand?? Token.

If I were a powerful local family with multiple tourist dependent business interests ? oh yea you bet I would be offering millions, its a business investment as much as anything else.

Its good business to protect your business.

yes 50k is token..... its not worth a risk to your life to talk for that amount, not even a thai farmhand. So ask yourself why a token amount ?

I bet we could raise that in a few days from TV members here and god knows how much if people started collecting for a fund.

How about it TV and george ? how about a reward fund for the killers and conviction ?

Do we care enough here ? Id like to think so and id happily donate a few k bht np

We are members of the PHA (Phangan Hotels Association), this is a government recognized group that was set up about 2 years ago, as a forum for owners to voice their views to improve business and quality of tourism for both tourist and owners alike. We pay an annual fee (about 4000 baht per year, which is nothing in a business sense), and the idea is that we get together monthly and come up with ideas. I can think of hundreds of initiatives... but they are still very narrow-minded, so we sit back a bit. Every "new idea" they have is prefaced with "Full moon party...", such as FMP marathon, FMP food festival, FMP Buddhist learning experience (!!!).

But you are right. I will gladly toss in 10,000 baht to a fund that does real things to help tourists. Mostly signage and community tents to give advice... our customers are VERY receptive to getting good advice. But all they get is BAD advice. As we all know, it is in everyone's best interests for the tourists to have positive memorable and happy experiences... the benefits are directly related to our bottom line. (Koh Tao, is just like Koh Phangan, but one tenth the size, and a few years behind... mind you they get pretty well the same volume of tourists as Koh Phangan.) Anyway, I am overly verbose in these threads, because it is of the utmost concern to us, and is firmly placed in the front of my mind. Sorry to crap on.

Not overly verbose at all. You made your point quite well. It's all about your business and your income.

You can selectively pull sentences out of my post to make it look like I'm only concerned about business, or you could read it more carefully and note that I make it clear that we aim to

" improve business and quality of tourism for both tourist and owners alike", and "it is in everyone's best interests for the tourists to have positive memorable and happy experiences... the benefits are directly related to our bottom line"...

If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem. The first thing I thought about when I saw the locals had put together 50,000 baht, was that 1. that is their price for any evidence that may be out there, and 2. that is the price that will be on your head if you come to them with the evidence. That's why it is critical that these types of things are managed in a transparent way... not a Koh Tao way.

[mojorison]

Personally, I reckon it is way too late to do anything, the murderer(s) would be well on their toes by now.

The focus should be on finding those two in the CCTV running and walking off. What is happening about that? Have pictures been circulated, is it on Thai TV with details of a reward?

What about the stuff about the guy cracking on to the girl prior to the murder in the bar? Surely, he must be easy to find, to have a "chat" with? What about the others in the bar and the friends of the two murdered? Now they are back home, do they have anything to add, now they are out of the frame?

The sad thing is, this could easily have been solved had the island been locked down first day and the integrity of the crime scene had remained intact. Alas, I fear this will go down as unsolved.

They know who it is. They are working through how to deal with it. At some point the realisation will hit them that they need a villain. In the past they would pay a lacky (a lot), but seeing as this could well be a capital offence it's hard to imagine finding a willing patsy.

[mojorison]

The money may be a pittance (to us) but it's probably more than you have donated?

Funny you should say that, because whilst I generally donate a given amount of my vast fortune to worthwhile causes (ALS is not one of them), I occasionally get a rush of blood to the head, and donate things to the local Wats. In the past I have donated a 9 tier pagoda style refrigerator (for cadavers), and a large (couple hundred kilogram) bronze bell... cost me a fortune... and why? I don't even believe. But anyway, there is giving , and then there is giving. You?

Edited September 21, 2014 by mojorison

[RickBradford]

The reward is up to 700,000 baht, according to the Thai press.

It had gone to 200,000, now the Tourism Promotion Office of Koh Samui has kicked in an extra 500,000.

http://www.khaosod.co.th/view_newsonline.php?newsid=TVRReE1USTVNalE1Tnc9PQ==&subcatid=

Edited September 21, 2014 by RickBradford

[DJVillain]

Why aren't the powerful local families offering up millions in reward money? 50,000 Baht is an insult.

Why should they? Would you?

It depends...

If it was hurting my business, the means to feed and keep a roof over my families head.... Yes... I would chip in to find justice and to help bring the good times back...

If money was no object to me and my family, I knew it was my son that butchered the poor souls but 'they are only Farang' and my little munchikin doesnt deserve a stretch inside because 'his family is too rich for that type of nonsense' and 'I can buy him out of trouble'.... Then I probably wouldnt...

[Chris Lawrence]

The Koh Tao murder case opens the door to an examination of ways to reform the Thai police force. The narrow goal would be to write policy guidelines and make organizational and management changes concerning police and media relations. The broader goal would be to use the experience of Koh Tao as the basis to rethink police governance, culture and management. To be realistic the culture of the police force mirrors its social media policy. It would be difficult to sustain to adopt the police social media policy from another country without alterations to the local culture of policing. Depending on the police culture, it may be very difficult to import a foreign social media model for policing without also importing the foreign police culture.

The Thai police culture includes reenactments by suspects with a seminar-sized group of uniformed police officers photographed looking on. The Thai culture is to one of extending face to the group of officers positioned by rank. It is difficult to fit a Social Media Police Unit into that Thai police cultural picture. But ignoring this opportunity to move ahead will certainly result in other Koh Tao cases emerging again and again. http://www.internationalcrimeauthors.com/?p=6004

Good article on lack of media presence in this case.

[lildragon]

Did the cops that arrested the Burmese get this reward then? (In addition to 'other' payments)