Mother of murdered German in Samui gives up hope of ever getting justice

[webfact]

Mother of murdered German in Samui gives up hope of ever getting justice

 

 

SAMUI: -- Yesterday, 20th August 2017, marked the 3 year anniversary of the death of Volker Schwartges from Duesseldorf (47).

 

Mr Schwartges was brutally murdered in Soi Green Mango by five mobsters who are members of local influential families. Despite extensive evidence including CCTV footage none of assailants ever stood trial or spent a single night in jail.

 

Distraught mother Gisela Schwartges announced yesterday that she has given up her fight against ignorance and corruption, and will no longer seek justice for her son as she believes it is unobtainable as the case was buried by Thai prosecutors and police a long time ago.

 

The murder of Mr Schwartges took place after an altercation with some youths he found sitting on his motorbike in the car park of the Green Mango. During the altercation Mr Schwartges was fatally stabbed. Three of the perpetrators were apprehended shortly after the attack and were taken to the police station where they confessed to hitting Mr Schwartges with broken bottles before a local Thai named Ittison Tanprasert slit his neck with a knife perforating his main artery causing his death. The knife was later secured and kept as evidence. Unfathomably after their confessions the men were allowed to walk free.

 

Several newspapers such as Duesseldorfer Express, BILD, FARANG, Wochenblitz and also Thai newspapers such as Bangkok Post, The Nation and Samui Times and Phuket Gazette reported on this murder case. However, very soon after the killings the case went quiet, no further questions were asked. The case went cold and so did the files.

 

 

Investigations by FARANG and Duesseldorfer Express seemed to revive the case in November 2014, when a letter to the Thai Embassy and Thai Foreign Office in Berlin was sent. The questions were: Why did the public prosecutor’s office Koh Samui – three months after the killing of Schwartges – not receive police files with investigation results and conclusions? A letter by the Royal Thai Embassy Berlin stated that the case was being investigated again and police in Chaweng were urged to move forward with their murder investigation. As a deadline 18/11/2014 was set – however, our research into this case showed no movement, at all. Nothing happened till today and no files were ever handed over to the court.

 

Another research at public prosecutor’s office Koh Samui, namely general attorney Paibul Achawanantakul showed that no police file had ever been presented by spring time 2015. A final call at Khun Paibul’s office was answered by the leaving public attorney in April 2015 – he confirmed that he never ever received a conclusive investigation report by Chaweng police. In May 2015 Paibul Achawanantakul was transferred, nobody ever resumed the murder case Schwartges, again.

 

Source: http://www.samuitimes.com/mother-murdered-german-samui-gives-hope-ever-getting-justice/

 

-- © Copyright Samui Times 2017-08-22

[StefanBBK]

Sorry that the mother has given up. Must be a horrible feeling.
I would have expected more from German officials, be that embassy or foreign ministry.


Sent from my SM-G950F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Samui Bodoh]

I truly weep for the poor mother; I cannot imagine the pain that she must feel.

 

However, the blunt truth is that she never really had a chance of justice or closure when fighting connected people.

 

I wish her well and hope that she somehow finds some peace.

[bdenner]

Very sad situation for Gisela.

Justice and Thailand is an oxymoron! Just follow the bulls#^t associated with Boss - the Red Bull heir.

[Thian]

I've seen a similar situation at the soi Green Mango , a group of Thai boys breaking the doors out of a car which belonged to a farang and thai wife.

 

Won't go back there.

[colinneil]

I feel for this poor lady.

Sad to say nobody gets justice here, unless they have serious money to throw into the  corrupt system.

Nobody in authority here cares about justice, only care about who will give us the most money.

[Get Real]

I am truly speechless!

[canuckamuck]

The new official anthem of the republic.

 

[darksidedog]

Finding justice here as a farang is notoriously difficult, and even when the police do arrest and prosecute people, you are never sure if they have the right people, or just convenient scapegoats. At least a couple of innocents haven't been stitched up this time, but a truly disgraceful performance all the same.

[Thaiwrath]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Unfathomably after their confessions the men were allowed to walk free.

Anywhere else it would be, but not Thailand.

[dinsdale]

where if you're rich and influential you can literally get away with murder. SHAME ON YOU. 

[rodney earl]

What can I say. Amazing Thailand.

[RichardColeman]

Funny how things like this reality don't make it into the tourism brochures ! 

[IamNoone88]

Disgraceful. The matter should not rest. The German Embassy should voice a very public opinion.

[nausea]

Kudos to the Samui Times for publicising the story; seems they haven't been Kao Tao'd. 

[timewilltell]

I have a couple of police reports currently going nowhere too which I am still following up 18 months later and included all the necessary evidence for the police so I understand the problem of this poor woman.

 

What really gets my goat is that the Embassies really want to do NOTHING to follow these cases up and it seems this is all in the hope of trade promotion with a country that is beset by rampant fraud and corruption which is throughly legislated against and prosecuted in these Western countries.  Apart from the fact they are leading small investors into a vipers nest, they are really actively encouraging the racist and corrupt practices that are becoming more and more frequent and unchecked.  It really is a disgrace on both sides.

[carmine]

Yet another nail in the coffin of tourism.  When is someone of position going to understand that all this stuff is sent around the world on social media to the detriment of the entire nation?!!!   Just beggars belief.

[Baerboxer]

Just another example of not having a professional modern effective efficient police service that actually enforce all laws equally and without favor.

 

Too many influential families and too much money to divvy out down there.

[manhood]

Here in Thailand it's all about MONEY: there is no justice in this country and all is under a corrupt system run by the so called "influental people" and supported by the so called "government"!!!!!!!

[pattayadgw]

My heart goes out to the poor mother who lost her son.   This is just another case of Thai injustice... sad to say but it's true!  'The rich get richer, the poor get the picture' 

[nobodysfriend]

No legal justice possible ? >  put a price on the murderer's head ...

[FitnessHealthTravel]

Farangs have very little security when it really comes down to it. Flying under the radar at all times, avoid all communication especially financial transactions (I don't mean day to day shopping) where ever possible and never every pay anyone one off EVER. That is the slipperiest slope of all. Once you get on that ride it's impossible to get off. In this case the German Government instead of letting millions of refugees into their Country should be looking after their own much better. It's a disgrace and Thailand needs to be ashamed of itself.

[Bangkok Barry]

Posted as Public on Facebook. Just to let the planet know what goes on under the palm trees.

[timewilltell]

1 hour ago, timewilltell said:

I have a couple of police reports currently going nowhere too which I am still following up 18 months later and included all the necessary evidence for the police so I understand the problem of this poor woman.

 

What really gets my goat is that the Embassies really want to do NOTHING to follow these cases up and it seems this is all in the hope of trade promotion with a country that is beset by rampant fraud and corruption which is throughly legislated against and prosecuted in these Western countries.  Apart from the fact they are leading small investors into a vipers nest, they are really actively encouraging the racist and corrupt practices that are becoming more and more frequent and unchecked.  It really is a disgrace on both sides.

And then again sometimes it is not the police but the Prosecutors who create the delays and obstruction but it seems that the richer the family involved, the more likely strange delays occur - funny that isn't it?.  The tentacles of corruption are like vineweed - they are long and extensive and difficult to get rid of completely.  It is really quite difficult to find out what is really going on especially without ''contacts'' to help.  A good dose of roundup required.

[geriatrickid]

2 hours ago, IamNoone88 said:

Disgraceful. The matter should not rest. The German Embassy should voice a very public opinion.

Understood, but here's a reality check; As much as some German  foreign affairs personnel want to do something, there is no political will in Germany to take action. NONE.  German foreign policy reflects the public sentiment, and the reality is that the German people do not care enough to take forceful action.

Yes, it is disgusting . Yes, there is a denial of justice. However, ask yourself why;

1. German  industry and  other invests still pour  money into Thailand. Taking forceful action might hurt their profits.

2. Since the murder , 2,000,000 German visitors have come to Thailand.  Obviously, the murder did not discourage their visits.

3. Duesseldorfer Express, BILD, FARANG, Wochenblitz et al have not made an effort to follow up or push the story. Obviously, it is not an interest to these outlets, nor to their readers.

 

Sad to say, it's just another dead body to the German public and they do not seem too upset over the  savage murder.

 

 

[SupermarineS6B]

Typical......... la la land........

[DLang]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Mr Schwartges was brutally murdered in Soi Green Mango by five mobsters

 

They weren't mobsters.

 

They were teenage thugs.

 

 

Imagine what they'll get up to now, knowing that they can stomp a farang to death in front of cctv and nothing ever happen to them.

 

Disgusting jungle society and culture. 

[DLang]

2 hours ago, carmine said:

Yet another nail in the coffin of tourism.

Utter nonsense.

 

Unfortunately. 

[robertson468]

I don't understand why the German Embassy has not written to the Ministry of Justice or the Prime Minister to complain about this and demand action.  They are just as guilty as the Thais for their inaction.

[carmine]

13 minutes ago, DLang said:

Utter nonsense.

 

Unfortunately. 

If you think stuff like this flowing through social media doesn't have a detrimental effect you must live in cloud cookoo land.  Wouldn't have had any effect ten years ago but in these times very much so.