Supreme Court reverses death sentence for two convicts in murder of Aussie auditor in 1999



BANGKOK: -- The Supreme Court today reversed the death sentences for two convicts and upheld life sentence for another for their involvement in the 1999 murder of Australian auditor Michael Wansley in Nakhon Sawan province.

Earlier in 2006, the Appeals Court upheld the death sentence for two convicts, Somchoke Suthiwiriwan and Sompong Buasakul ruled by the first court.

At today’s hearing of the Supreme Court’s final judgement of their appeals, the court reversed the death sentence for Somchoke and Sompong after their appeals has ground to listen to.

It then handed down life sentence for both of them.

But for the first defendant, Boonpan Suthiwiriwan, the court upheld his life sentence handed by the appeals Court.

All were former executives of Kasetthai sugar mill in Nakhon Sawan.

The three and the sugar mill owner, Pradit Siriviriyakul, were charged for masterminding the murder of 58-year-old Wansley. He was shot dead on March 10, 1999, while on his way to audit the books of the sugar mill in Nakhon Sawan.

Only the owner Pradit Siriviriyakul was acquitted after the first court gave him the benefit of doubt.

According to the indictment filed with the court in 2006, Pradit hired Boonpan, Somchoke, Sompong and hit man Somchai Jaihao to kill Wansley because he had uncovered financial irregularities in the business, which was in the process of debt restructuring. Somchai has been tried and given a life sentence by Nakhon Sawan Court.

On September 5, 2006, the lower court sentenced Boonpan to life, condemned Somchoke and Sompong to death and acquitted Pradit. The public prosecutor and co-plaintiffs then submitted an appeal to get Pradit punished while the three other defendants appealed for acquittal.

The Appeals Court was told Boonpan arranged for a motorcycle and a gun, while Somchoke and Sompong helped the alleged gunmen Somchai and Pichet Khaewsamduang (who was acquitted by a lower court in a separate trial) in fleeing to Bangkok. The Appeals Court upheld the lower-court rulings handing down a life sentence to Boonpan and death sentences to the other two men.

Finding weakness in evidence against Pradit, the Appeals Court upheld his acquittal by the lower court on benefit of doubt.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/supreme-court-reverses-death-sentence-two-convicts-murder-aussie-auditor-1999


-- Thai PBS 2015-02-25

This was the case in which the banks owed a few hundred million USD hired Deloittes to investigate dodgy financials. Of course the owner, from a wealthy well-known family was acquited but the pawns got death, now reversed. A judge was bribed ( and sacked) but the owner, charged with murder ("...it's good that the farang is dead but make sure it can never be traced back to us") walked free on bail.

The Owner walks, hope it wasn,t because of corruption. Personally when in trouble in Asia, i have had to pay the Judge. I should have paid him sooner, as dithering cost me double.

The hit men deserved life sentences, Pradit should have already been executed. Again, in Thailand, the rich and powerful escape any punishment.

The only guy with reason to order the murder, and the money to buy his way out, walks. Amazing Thailand.

This was the case in which the banks owed a few hundred million USD hired Deloittes to investigate dodgy financials. Of course the owner, from a wealthy well-known family was acquited but the pawns got death, now reversed. A judge was bribed ( and sacked) but the owner, charged with murder ("...it's good that the farang is dead but make sure it can never be traced back to us") walked free on bail.

Some people would trade their future karma for present monetary reward. Now, why does the Thai vocabulary not have an equivalent for Integrity?

The Judge who granted bail in the original case ( and was removed from office for doing so after a recommendation from the Justice Ministry that he be sacked immediately) subsequently, almost immediately, got a job with the constitutional court.

Wansley case background

http://www.reocities.com/chainat_prov/4309/THA-wansley0008.html

So, the 3 x who actually did the murder get reduced sentences, whilst the owner (who one would assume would be the only one to actually benefit from the murder) is given the benefit of the doubt and walks away scot free. Unbelievable.

So, the 3 x who actually did the murder get reduced sentences, whilst the owner (who one would assume would be the only one to actually benefit from the murder) is given the benefit of the doubt and walks away scot free. Unbelievable.

Yup. money sure does give a lot of benefit of doubt

Always has in Thailand and always will

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This was the case in which the banks owed a few hundred million USD hired Deloittes to investigate dodgy financials. Of course the owner, from a wealthy well-known family was acquited but the pawns got death, now reversed. A judge was bribed ( and sacked) but the owner, charged with murder ("...it's good that the farang is dead but make sure it can never be traced back to us") walked free on bail.

Correct

I find the criminal justice process in Thailand to be incredibly slow and far from satisfactory, but on a separate issue:

Prior to the incident, I had been doing some dangerous work in the financial sector and received five death threats, two of which appeared to be bluffs and three of which were deemed credible. As a result I had a round-the-clock team of armed bodyguards in place for about eighteen months.

Mike told me of death threats apparently from the same source and related to his work at the sugar mill, and I strongly advised him to take them seriously. I repeated the same advice to others at Deloittes. Their view was that no one would dare to kill a foreigner, and my security team chipped in that they thought that I was a bit paranoid, but that was okay so long as they were being paid.

If you receive credible death threats in a dangerous situation, you would be well advised to take them seriously.

I miss Mike and he still owes me a few beers, but I guess he'll eventually settle when I meet him at the Cloud 9 Bar in heaven.

The hit men deserved life sentences, Pradit should have already been executed. Again, in Thailand, the rich and powerful escape any punishment.

You missed that bit, didn't you, the gunman got life.

Top court upholds convictions in murder of Australian auditor Wansley
WansleyKesinee Taengkhiao
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- THE SUPREME Court yesterday upheld a lower-court ruling that had sentenced a former executive of Kaset Thai Sugar Co to life imprisonment for his role in the 1999 murder of Australian auditor Michael Wansley.

The three defendants were Bunpan Suthiwiriyawan, former chief of personnel and public relations for Kaset Thai Sugar in Nakhon Sawan; Bunpan's brother Somchok, who was former staff member of Thai Identity Sugar in Uttaradit; and another man identified as Sompong Buasakul.

The three men had been charged with conspiring to commit murder, although they denied the charges.

In the original case, prosecutors accused mill owner and Kaset Thai Sugar manager Pradit Siriviriyakul of hiring Bunpan, Somchok and Sompong to murder Wansley by firing at him while he was travelling to the sugar mill in Nakhon Sawan province in a van.

It was alleged that Wansley - who was auditing the mill on behalf of South Sathorn Planners Co - had uncovered fraud at the mill, which was under debt rehabilitation, and had refused to keep quiet about it.

Prosecutors said the Australian auditor died instantly after the bullets hit his head and body.

The Criminal Court on September 5, 2006, sentenced Bunpan to life in prison for being an accomplice in the murder, handed down death sentences to Somchok and Sompong for committing murder, and acquitted Pradit for lack of solid evidence that he had hired the three to commit the crime.

Prosecutors took the case to a higher court, asking that Pradit be punished, while the other three defendants also appealed against their sentences. The Court of Appeals on July 13, 2011, upheld the lower court's ruling. The three defendants lodged an appeal with the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court upheld the lower court's decision to sentence Bunpan to life imprisonment because there was solid and circumstantial evidence plus witness testimonies to incriminate Bunpan for being an accomplice in the murder.

However, the court struck down the lower courts' ruling to sentence Somchok and Sompong to death and instead sentenced them to life imprisonment for being accomplices in the murder.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Top-court-upholds-convictions-in-murder-of-Austral-30254865.html


-- The Nation 2015-02-26

The hit men deserved life sentences, Pradit should have already been executed. Again, in Thailand, the rich and powerful escape any punishment.

You missed that bit, didn't you, the gunman got life.

You missed the bit. To say "The gunman deserved life sentences" is equivalent to saying "The gunmen got what they deserved, being life sentences..."

It's called an elliptical inference. Maybe look it up?

most countries do the crime serve the time but in Thailand do the crime pay some cash and walk away easy peasy

A DuPont accused of murder sitting it out as a free man until it comes to court years later and charges dropped. Another DuPont family member accused of murder but given probation because jail would be too harsh for this particular person ... and more .... Bankers launder money ... defraud customers ... illegally fix rates ... profit from high risk ventures with other people's money ... and with this ethic I have no doubt they have sanctioned murders. Too big to jail is not a local occurrence. Thailand is chump change by comparison to the USA, UK, EU and Russia. It is all disgusting.

I can know one person who will be happy,

Tony Abbot who feels keenly the sanctity of human life and understands the grotesqueness of capital punishment.

They will surely be celebrating this victory at the Aussie Embassy tonight, perhaps they can point out this story to the Indonesian leadership, an indication of the quality of mercy.

Of course, the rich guy gets away. So typical of the Thai court system.

So if the owner didn't organise and fund the hit, who did?

most countries do the crime serve the time but in Thailand do the crime pay some cash and walk away easy peasy

Yeah, cos no such corruption in the west, yeah? Er, no.

I am surprised that this was even mentioned in a news article. I mean, it's just another normal day in Thailand, right?

Boy, always the whiners. Look boys and girls they only escape if you let them. It is always up to you in the end. If you were here in the old days you would understand what I am talking about but, few here still do. It was not always like this. So I suppose one gets the justice they will accept.

Wansley case background

http://www.reocities.com/chainat_prov/4309/THA-wansley0008.html

Yes......that about says it all while nothing has changed........grown worse if anything.

So if the owner didn't organise and fund the hit, who did?

I think the point has been made in this case and many others that the more money you have, the more "doubt" or "lack of evidence" or "insufficient evidence" etc etc will be fired at the judge!

All the posters having a go at Prayuth, obviously they cannot read as the acquittal of the rich guy was back in 2006; if these posters are examples of western brain power give me Thai anytime!!!!!

Off topic deflection posts have been removed as well as the replies.

A post containing Thai language has been removed. English is the only acceptable language anywhere on ThaiVisa including Classifieds, except within the Thai language forum, where of course using Thai is allowed.

Although this case had a tragic result for the auditor and his family it is breathtakingly hypocritical for US and UK citizens to criticize the Thai justice system. Recall that an unprovoked attack on Iraq was initiated by both the US and UK-a war crime-and there was wanton destruction of the Iraqi civilian infrastructure-another war crime. There was industrial scale torture and murder facilitated by a worldwide network of black sites and equally black worldwide aerial delivery system of victims. The death toll probably exceeds a million people both from direct results of bombing and the indirect result of disease and untreated injuries.

Have the authors of THIS barbarism been hanged? While it is perfectly proper to be outraged at a blatant miscarriage of justice it would be better to look homeward at the grotesque and massive miscarriages of justice perpetrated by the leaders of Western society. Recall "the mote in thy neighbor's eye while ignoring the beam in thine own?"

Nothing new here, the usual corrupt elite class getting away with murder as always

Although this case had a tragic result for the auditor and his family it is breathtakingly hypocritical for US and UK citizens to criticize the Thai justice system. Recall that an unprovoked attack on Iraq was initiated by both the US and UK-a war crime-and there was wanton destruction of the Iraqi civilian infrastructure-another war crime. There was industrial scale torture and murder facilitated by a worldwide network of black sites and equally black worldwide aerial delivery system of victims. The death toll probably exceeds a million people both from direct results of bombing and the indirect result of disease and untreated injuries.

Have the authors of THIS barbarism been hanged? While it is perfectly proper to be outraged at a blatant miscarriage of justice it would be better to look homeward at the grotesque and massive miscarriages of justice perpetrated by the leaders of Western society. Recall "the mote in thy neighbor's eye while ignoring the beam in thine own?"

Totally off topic so not even worth quantifying with a response.