Koh Tao: All three migrant workers confess to rape and murder of British tourists

[lucaswallachia]

"Police officers then led the two to a safe-house where they were intensively interrogated."

I can imagine what that means. Beaten up intensively?

"Some blond strands of human hair were found at the scene and were kept as evidence."

Found or planted?

Only a DNA match by the brit police I will believe. Match the DNA of the semen with that of the suspects. There have been too many mess-ups to base it on a confession only.

The blonde hair was in one of the first reports to come out, and that it was dyed hair.

[Mudlover]

Three friends go to the beach to drink, smoke cigarettes and sing songs. Where did the garden hoe come from? Did it just happen to be there, or did they bring it with them? 'Premeditated' comes to mind.

[elektrified]

Yesterday the three were Win, Saw and Maw. Today they are Win, Sor and Mao. Am I nit-picking ?

The Myanmar and Rakhine (Arakan) languages don't use Latin letters, so there can be multiple ways to write the same name in English. Same for Thai: My girlfriend's nickname is 'Noy' but it can also be written as 'Noi'.

"Saw" can also be So, Soe or Cho and I believe in translation from Thai they are saying Cho (who is the guy caught on the camera).

[SteveFong]

I want to hear from Sean McAnna,

it may be that he fingered the guys arrested and that is why he was threatened

[toybits]

Thainess at its best - I guess.

[NeverSure]

I think the key word here is 'grueling' in referring to the all day interrogation. I imagine the 3 would confess to anything after that. The Thai police have zero credibility--I would be more inclined to accept that they have caught the killers if they had included some British police in the investigation from the beginning and had them in on every part of the investigation from the evidence collection, testing,storing of evidence, interrogation, etc.

Why include the British? That would be a personal insult to the Thai police. We've had foreigners murdered in America. The baseball player from Australia comes to mind. He was shot in the back because a few punks were bored. Anyway, the Australian police weren't involved, and I seriously doubt the Americans would have wanted them involved.

I know what you're saying, and it would benefit the investigation if the Brits were involved. Still, this happened on Thai soil. The Thai police would be embarrassed and wouldn't want outside interference.

The differences are that the Australians would have been welcome, but I doubt they suspected a coverup or ineptitude. The US arrested 3 Americans without ever saying that no American could do such a thing. Australians are friends and allies of the US and the US doesn't have a culture of saving face.

Here, the US FBI has an office in Bangkok and they've been sitting there twiddling their thumbs after being told they aren't wanted.

[webfact]

UPDATE:

Two Burmese men 'admit killing Britons in Thailand'

(BBC) Thai Police have said two Burmese men have apparently confessed to killing two British tourists on Koh Tao island.

Police told the BBC they believe they have identified the two men who killed Hannah Witheridge and David Miller.

Thailand's police commissioner said DNA samples taken from Ms Witheridge's body matched those of two Burmese men who are in police custody.

The bodies of Ms Witheridge, 23, and Mr Miller, 24, were found on the beach on 15 September with severe head injuries.

The two men are expected to be presented at a news conference on the popular tourist destination of Koh Tao on Friday.

A reward of about £13,000 has been offered for information leading to arrests.

Full story: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-29470965


-- BBC 2014-10-03

[draftvader]

The speed at which these threads are progressing is a clear sign to me that this is not over. What is interesting to me, today, is how the British media are writing their headlines. The use of parentheses tells me that there is little belief in the conclusion being presented by the Thai authorities.

Press Association - Pair 'confess' to Britons' murders

BBC - Burmese 'killed Britons in Thailand'

Others are following up the arrest statement with "police say" or "police claim".

I know that many here have English as a 2nd or 3rd language. Just in case this is lost on you I will just explain that this means that the British Press do not believe this at all. Time for British Citizens to push their MPs over this. For the sake of the safety of our citizens abroad. Maybe somebody wants to wake up Mark Kent too....or is he too busy looking the other way?

[canuckamuck]

Where do they get these lightning fast DNA results?

Weren't these guys picked up just 24 hours ago?

[6NS]

Is it just me or does this pro,,,,,,,, 'we have the killers arrested' bull come in waves?

If this is all true then it's great news for the families to these scumbags finally arrested and give at least some closure for them.

There's a lot of unsolved all around the world that will never be solved and the Thai police were under the pump from day one with such a high profile case.

Let's hope that all the authorities involved in this case will learn from this including procedures and press statements in future cases.

18 days is excellent work considering the amount of suspects they had to deal with.

Well done despite the press gaffs along the way!

Agree completely with you. As I mentioned in another thread, not exactly textbook criminal investigating, but, it now appears certain the RTP have found the culprits.

The way the families of David and Hannah have conducted themselves throughout this ordeal is a real credit to them. I am also extremely proud of the RTP for sticking to their guns and investigating they way they deemed most appropriate.

I believe this outcome will surely go some way to restoring people's faith in not only the RTP, but also in Thailand as a holiday destination.

Stay safe guys, use common sense and let's all stop with the silly conspiracy theories and get on with the healing process for all involved.

Meanwhile the real killers are sitting somewhere laughing and joking. Does that sit easy with you in cloud cuckoo land?

Too many on here are unwilling to accept any outcome other than a Hi So Thai.
They themselves are as bad as they claim the RTP to be. Only interesded if evidence points to Hi So.

[crazygreg44]

OF COURSE THE DNA MATCHES ......!

i would like to know if the ORIGINAL DNA ( not the one thay come up with now the culprits are detained and their DNA has been "sampled" ) from the body of the girl, matches the Kanman's son, who has NEVER BEEN TESTED since. Because he simply has dissapeared.

prove me wrong. If the Kanman's son is innocent, it would be simple for him to show up at the police, give them his DNA , and be released from the possibility of guilt.

Why does he not come forward ?

oh, i ve got to edit this. Well i think DNA is NOT worth a proof in a culture of this like. They can fake, make it up or simply re-arrange DNA samples. DNA in a country of the bluffs is not worth a fart given

[Chicken George]

In this instance I would like to see a picture of the 3 accused. Usually we do so why not this time? Maybe they have a few bruises? Cynical?Yes!

[Docno]

As for 'grueling' interrogation, I can only imagine the terror these men felt in police custody and when brought to a safe-house (what the hell is that in the context of a police investigation??). They come from a country where the police are much nastier than those in Thailand, so you're starting with from baseline of fear of the police. Add to that, they are foreigners that are looked down upon by Thais and that they are highly unlikely to get any consular support. And each was probably dealt with alone. They are probably also aware of the supposed propensity of Thai police to scapegoat the powerless to protect the powerful. I wouldn't put it past the Thai police to 'administer a beating', but it would have been a terrifying enough experience for these men even without that. I really hope we get the true results of the DNA check... in fact, I really hope these are perpetrators because the police would lose too much face to pull back on this one.

[draftvader]

Well done to the Royal Thai Police , A difficult Crime to solve due to the large amount of foreigners and Migrant workers on the island. Anyone on this post who thinks they could have done a better job in two weeks of solving this crime should go home stop being a typical Farang layabout and get a proper job and leave the stupid comments out of the post. I bet the DNA comes back a perfect match for all three suspects.

If the RTP are so confident of their arrests they'll have no issue having a member of the British police fly out here and swab from these men then. Right?

[taony]

The Burmese would have run if they did it.

Bothered to read the OP ?

While this was going on another team of police officers arrested the third man at a Surat Thani municipal pier after it was discovered that he had boarded a boat and left Koh Tao Island late last night.

So, one guy of three left the island 18 days later and that counts to you as THE BURMESE running if THEY did it?

[gemguy]

Hmmmm...it sounds plausible....but.....wait a moment...........a person would surmise if you and your buddies committed a gruesome crime like that then it would be best to leave the island and go back to Burma soon after the police started showing up in force ...at least for a while anyhow.

I mean people were still coming and going during the police investigation while they did not or could not block the human traffic completely....right?

I hope these are the guys because it does sound like the police are finally on the right track relative to the ongoing story line and the various aspects of the known events that occurred along with the confirmed evidence they do have.

However I also feel that something is not right about apprehending these 3 particular men after almost 3 weeks and if they are the perpetrators you would think say 1 or 2 of them would not stay around and leave the island while 1 or 2 of them were boldly confident they would never be caught out.

The fact that all 3 of them stayed around , in plain sight, while the police continued to question everyone and everyone who is / was suspect, just does not add up to my way of thinking.

How convenient that the police found all 3 of the perpetrators still hanging around after 3 weeks after being the 3 people that perpetrated a gruesome 2 person murder scene.

Plausible but very questionable also.

Cheers

[Mosha]

I thought the DNA collected at the scene was North Asian?

[Anthony5]

The Burmese would have run if they did it.

Bothered to read the OP ?

While this was going on another team of police officers arrested the third man at a Surat Thani municipal pier after it was discovered that he had boarded a boat and left Koh Tao Island late last night.

So, one guy of three left the island 18 days later and that counts to you as THE BURMESE running if THEY did it?

Is there a law somewhere that says, if they aren't running they can't be guilty ?

[Baerboxer]

"Win stated that he was curious and grabbed a garden hoe and went to sneak a peek of the couple making out."

Curious, so grabbed a garden hoe??

Flashers need an old raincoat and now it seems voyeurs need to carry a garden hoe, We live and learn.

More likely the first weapon he could lay his hands on. They may be lowly educated with little in the way of humanity but the instinct for self preservation is strong. Take a weapon in case he was spotted looking maybe.

[draftvader]

Oh, and Mark Kent (if you know where to find out what your "charges" are thinking) if you are worried about lost trade agreements just ask to be relocated across the border to up and coming Myanmar. They'll certainly swing across to backing you up if you dangle that carrot in front of them. Being that it is their citizens about to get strung up I'm sure they'd be interested in hearing of a suitable arrangement.

If you can't beat them.....

[trainman34014]

For safe house read....'Torture Chamber ' !

[elektrified]

Where do they get these lightning fast DNA results?

Weren't these guys picked up just 24 hours ago?

I wonder if there is a time lag on the TV posts or if people are not reading the media in Thailand??? These guys have been under suspicion for some time.

[SteveFong]

I think the key word here is 'grueling' in referring to the all day interrogation. I imagine the 3 would confess to anything after that. The Thai police have zero credibility--I would be more inclined to accept that they have caught the killers if they had included some British police in the investigation from the beginning and had them in on every part of the investigation from the evidence collection, testing,storing of evidence, interrogation, etc.

Why include the British? That would be a personal insult to the Thai police. We've had foreigners murdered in America. The baseball player from Australia comes to mind. He was shot in the back because a few punks were bored. Anyway, the Australian police weren't involved, and I seriously doubt the Americans would have wanted them involved.

I know what you're saying, and it would benefit the investigation if the Brits were involved. Still, this happened on Thai soil. The Thai police would be embarrassed and wouldn't want outside interference.

The differences are that the Australians would have been welcome, but I doubt they suspected a coverup or ineptitude. The US arrested 3 Americans without ever saying that no American could do such a thing. Australians are friends and allies of the US and the US doesn't have a culture of saving face.

Here, the US FBI has an office in Bangkok and they've been sitting there twiddling their thumbs after being told they aren't wanted.

the FBI is not there for the Thai's

the FBI is there, tracking their own work

[boomerangutang]

What about the taxi driver that was beaten and intimidated by cops to give a confession, and the Burmese close To The crime scene were The first arrested were they not? How come the DNA evidence wasn't matched with them much, much sooner? And why the evidence planting of bloody clothes by police?

I'm not buying it. This was a crime of hate and anger. Ohh But The butler Did it. Baloney!

Don't be surprised if one or more of those suspects commit (supposed) 'suicide' while in detention. That would be a boon to the cop's (contrived) version of events. All male members of the Village Headman's family should be DNA tested - preferably by an objective outside lab.

Note: even if the semen DNA of the Burmese doesn't match, the cops can say 'mai pen rai' the Burmese went berserk and killed the two Brits in a rage ....they'll say anything to defray scrutiny of the VIP Thai suspects.

[elektrified]

Hmmmm...it sounds plausible....but.....wait a moment...........a person would surmise if you and your buddies committed a gruesome crime like that then it would be best to leave the island and go back to Burma soon after the police started showing up in force ...at least for a while anyhow.

I mean people were still coming and going during the police investigation while they did not or could not block the human traffic completely....right?

I hope these are the guys because it does sound like the police are finally on the right track relative to the ongoing story line and the various aspects of the known events that occurred along with the confirmed evidence they do have.

However I also feel that something is not right about apprehending these 3 particular men after almost 3 weeks and if they are the perpetrators you would think say 1 or 2 of them would not stay around and leave the island while 1 or 2 of them were boldly confident they would never be caught out.

The fact that all 3 of them stayed around , in plain sight, while the police continued to question everyone and everyone who is / was suspect, just does not add up to my way of thinking.

How convenient that the police found all 3 of the perpetrators still hanging around after 3 weeks after being the 3 people that perpetrated a gruesome 2 person murder scene.

Plausible but very questionable also.

Cheers

no one is reading the reports (other than TV). The police have been following them for a while now.

[crazygreg44]

As for 'grueling' interrogation, I can only imagine the terror these men felt in police custody and when brought to a safe-house (what the hell is that in the context of a police investigation??). They come from a country where the police are much nastier than those in Thailand, so you're starting with from baseline of fear of the police. Add to that, they are foreigners that are looked down upon by Thais and that they are highly unlikely to get any consular support. And each was probably dealt with alone. They are probably also aware of the supposed propensity of Thai police to scapegoat the powerless to protect the powerful. I wouldn't put it past the Thai police to 'administer a beating', but it would have been a terrifying enough experience for these men even without that. I really hope we get the true results of the DNA check... in fact, I really hope these are perpetrators because the police would lose too much face to pull back on this one.

I don't know why, why you and other people seem to give so much importance to the DNA checks.

In a cover up, DNA samples are being deliberately switched, lost or simply being misused as"evidence" against the innocent

[Interman]

Wouldn't take a beating during confession... Why do expats think that Asians would handle an interrogation like that?? Asia 101,, "this money is gonna take care of your dirt poor family if you confess".

[wabothai]

Mr. Kent, you only rub salt in the wounds with your political correct textbook diplomatic hogwash. You know better !!!!!

[NongKhaiKid]

Since the start of this fiasco many posters have called on outside agencies e.g. FBI and Scotland Yard, to get involved, for the British Embassy to get various samples for DNA analysis and so on.

Let's put this to bed, it all comes down to jurisdiction and outside agencies have none and can only do what's asked of them IF invited in by the BIB and cleared by the government.

At various times the BIB said they would consult the FBI on DNA then decided their own people could do it then it was to be Singapore and I'm honestly not sure where the tests have been done.

Britain offered technical help with video assessment etc. but it didn't appear to be taken up.

Let's face it, apart from loss of face over having to seek outside help if the BIB were up to anything over evidence tampering etc. the last thing they would want is an independent expert running the rule over their ' work '.

[deecee10]

I wonder what genuine evidence they have other than the confessions.