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

[MrJohnson]

Confessions obtained under duress. Burmese scapegoats. Case closed. Another black mark against the judicial system in Thailand. This should serve as a salutary lesson to all foreigners in this country. Stay on the right side of the law and keep your head below the parapets.

[smedly]

In the original story there were some guys singing english songs (Sean) I wander that they do have 1 of the culprits but not all. There are still many pieces missing. The most important question I have always said, is where did the hoe come from. I do not believe there are garden hoes that belong to no-one in particular left all over the beach at night. Which restaurant did it come from.

Yes one of them said - can you wait here while I go get my Hoe from the shed to beat you to death I forgot to bring it with me tonight

Please don't get out of that chair

[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.

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

That's exactly why I said that "I hope we get the true results of the DNA check" ... meaning that there's no guarantee that we will

[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?

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

You said that they were running and gave your evidence.

[noitom]

Looks like a frame up.

[Baerboxer]

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

They are migrant workers with I suspect somewhat limited education and intellect. They may not enjoy the same logical thought process that you have; they may not have had the finances to do a runner; they may have thought running would attract attention; they may not have a clue what DNA testing means; etc etc

There is a raft of reasons why they may not have fled.

If the DNA found in the two semen samples two of these guys, and the hair matches that of the guy who recently dies his hair, and they confess, then it looks like they have them.

The media circus hasn't helped and makes people more circumspect than usual. The RTP can catch murderers, and pick up foreigners quickly on request from the appropriate embassy when they want to.

Way back there was talk of Burmese men, guitar playing and singing. Seems this line of inquiry has been quietly pursued whilst all the other "leaks to the press" have been red herrings. The RTP have apparently been watching these guys all the time whilst collecting all the evidence.

I wonder if we will hear from Mr. McAnna again on this subject as it doesn't fit in with his version of events.

[catweazle]

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.

Are your brain cells off for holiday? If you are a group of let's say three Brit architects on an assignment on an Indonesian island. A terrible rape and double murder happens and it appears that a group, not a single culprit was involved, police is stumbling around blindly and "pretends" to be unable to find the murderer, three weeks pass, police getting anxious while you and your friends who are clean and have absolutely nothing to do with the case have nothing to fear. Police suddenly takes in one of your two co-workers (let's call him Paul) and after a day of "grueling investigation" newspapers announce the police have found one of the rapist murderers and he confessed. You know, that Paul was playing Poker that night together with you and your other friend who is nicknamed "Pops" until early morning... You read or hear that they now are looking for the rest of the "group". You know that the confession must have beaten or waterboarded out of your friend as he could not have been the victim. You know that they are coming for you next - what would you do? Run or stay???? This explains why none of the three ran right that night or later, after day two or three, when the "lockdown" stopped. Don't you think they would be long gone by now if they would be the true killers?

[ggt]

All three migrant workers were admitted to the hospital with fingers and toes missing...

[orange31]

Mr. Kent went on to praise the Royal Thai Police in solving the case and have shown exemplary professionalism as a crime fighting unit.

People from the UK must be so proud of their ambassador to Thailand.

i have said on several other threads on the forum that the ' art ' of diplomacy can be taken to extremes and can include being extra nice to the host nation especially when not warranted.

If he meant his words he's a fool and shouldn't be in the job and if didn't, and I trust he didn't, he could have said something less gushing.

He must be one of only a small number here that could consider ' exemplary professionalism ' was shown.

It would be justifiable if the families and media in Britain climbed into the Foreign Office about the whole situation.

I don't think it's actually a direct quote, there aren't any speech marks! He may have just said something like 'They caught the guys that did it, good job', which then gets translated by the journalist into the above sentence.

[WhizBang]

This reeks. I do not buy one word of it. Scapegoats for sure.

Investigate all recent money transactions since the murders, especially those of the village head, his family AND the police.

[boomerangutang]

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

They're making it up as they go along. Who ever thought Thais could be so creative. There was an L&M cig butt on the beach 65 meters from the crime scene, all of a sudden cops come up with a vid of the boys buying a pack of L&M's. Hey, hundreds of people smoke L&Ms on that island and that cig butt could have been there for days.

Songs sung not in Thai or Burmese in the wee hours of the morning. How difficult would it be to find a villager to say something like that? Bt.5,000 would suffice.

.....and now we hear about a phone thrown in the sand somewhere, .....oh come on. We're hearing about every sort of clue (all of them surfacing just now) except clues which are most important, like DNA matches.

And, surprise surprise, the former prime suspects are fading from view nearly as fast as their Village Headman father hoped they would.

[AGareth2]

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

The DNA

[pomchop]

Boy there sure are a ton of arm chair detectives on this TV thread. It seems obvious that no matter what happens, no matter what DNA proof the RTP may have that it will never ever satisfy those who have long ago decided that some Thai persons did it....

Did it ever occur that just maybe the three Burmese did it and that the DNA evidence was not manipulated?

In other words did it ever occur to the armchair detectives that just maybe all of your conspiracy theories and conclusion jumping just might be wrong?

Of course it didn't, hasn't and won't......

How about just waiting until all the details come out, all the evidence is presented and reviewed , and we have all the facts before we "string em up".

[Carrerakiss]

"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??

First thing that you do if you want to be a voyeur....grab your garden hoe.

[wabothai]

I hope the judge is wise enough to throw out the case and order a new investigation by different folks.

[notbkk]

Mr. Kent went on to praise the Royal Thai Police in solving the case and have shown exemplary professionalism as a crime fighting unit.

People from the UK must be so proud of their ambassador to Thailand.

Yes, and the case has NOT been solved. "Innocent until proven guilty", Mr Ambassador! DNA tests only out "tomorrow". Trial awaiting!

[Baerboxer]

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

I don't suppose we'll ever really know. But, it is possible the the British Ambassador has been privy to the evidence and the real line of inquiry all along. That's why he's made certain statements.

The DNA results need to be shown, and would be even better if verified, but that's unlikely as it questions the integrity.

The missing 2 minutes of CCTV needs to be resolved too. Although the suspect in the CCTV certainly looks like one of the Burmese suspects.

Wonder which restaurants and bars these 3 worked in?

[NongKhaiKid]

Mr. Kent went on to praise the Royal Thai Police in solving the case and have shown exemplary professionalism as a crime fighting unit.

People from the UK must be so proud of their ambassador to Thailand.

i have said on several other threads on the forum that the ' art ' of diplomacy can be taken to extremes and can include being extra nice to the host nation especially when not warranted.

If he meant his words he's a fool and shouldn't be in the job and if didn't, and I trust he didn't, he could have said something less gushing.

He must be one of only a small number here that could consider ' exemplary professionalism ' was shown.

It would be justifiable if the families and media in Britain climbed into the Foreign Office about the whole situation.

I don't think it's actually a direct quote, there aren't any speech marks! He may have just said something like 'They caught the guys that did it, good job', which then gets translated by the journalist into the above sentence.

I'd like to think so but would a Thai journalist use vocabulary like ' exemplary professionalism ' ?

[Oziex1]

Oh the Burmese again, for a nationality found guilty of so many crimes here in Thailand why are the getting in so easily?

[poweratradio]

Oh gosh if any of the BS posts in this thread are to be bought, the we have makings of some great crime drama screen writers. What the hell is to call in to question the arrest with evidence and confession of one suspect who immediately implicates is buddies. This all in 18 days. Koo Doos to the RTP. Check yourselves and consider equally horrible crimes in your own home countries and how often your police services stay on it like rabid dogs like RTP did and with idiots from the media misquoting and publishing guesses and dreams as fact. Get real folks and watch the chips fall where they may.

[hiller]

Was the "safe house" the storeroom of the AC Bar?

[wabothai]

Not guilty + safe house = guilty.

[IAMSOBAD]

They are lining up to confess to a crime they did not commit. All so their families will have a huge payoff.

Follow the money.

[jabis]

It ain't over until the fat lady sings - so as I said earlier on - let's just watch how this pans out, thru due process.

[petercool]

off topic troll post removed

[catweazle]

Some naive people here ask what benefit or reason it would have for an innocent non-Thai to confess...

Get real people, this is real life, not Teletubbies!

Perhaps the reason was to stop the pain of the "grueling investigation" in the "safe house", or the promise to get life instead of the shooting squad, or perhaps they promised the "migrant workers" to leave their families back home in Burma alone, as otherwise a friend over there would visit mom, dad and the baby sister? Or perhaps it was just to survive that one day in the "safe house", regaldless of what comes next, because they told him he'll gonna die tonight if he won't sign.

If it smells like a rat, it most likely is. This was a hate crime, an act of revenge - not a romantic "I got aroused" story!

Over and out!

[Neeranam]

If we all think it is a set up, we could hire a lawyer between us for the 'Myanmar 3'. A good lawyer could get some light shed on things.

Would only be a few baht each.

[nitehawk56]

Let's see what's really fishy about all this, they already have the DNA results back, in lest than 24 Hours REALLY

[The stuttering parrot]

Judging by the replies it seems to me that some posters on here have been on here so long that it has fried their brains.

I have seen this lot on other topics who come up with all these conspiracy theories even if people are guilty or not guilty as long as they can argue and try a get a rise out of posters that makes their day.

Never any credit where credit is due just the same old drivel and abuse of anyone who dares disagrees with their views .

I particularly liked the theory where I have planed my post or maybe it was I'm a troll all because I said if this is true then congrats to the police.

Wow boys there is a life beyond the cyber world of the internet.

Anyway go and hire a Mel Gibson movie called conspiracy theory and if these guys are indeed found guilty I hope you have the go nads to come back on here and apologise for being wrong.

[rametindallas]

If these 3 were working on the Island, then their DNA should have been some of the first collected and eliminated. Are they being retested? If so, why?

Is this like a school test, we will keeping testing you until you pass?

Thai PBS reported a few days ago that three hundred DNA samples had been taken. I read a couple of days ago that there were more than 2,000 foreign workers on the island. IF those reports are correct, then they didn't test the DNA of every eligible male on the island. Hopefully, the original murder scene DNA is safe (and uncorruptable) in a Singapore lab and the lab can report if the are sent a suspect's sample that matches. If this weren't Thailand, I would say that there is no way the police have the unmitigated gall to charge these individuals using anything less than DNA evidence corroborated by an outside lab. Confessions are nice but we have heard stories of how Thai police are expert at getting confessions..