Two Myanmar migrants were sentenced to death Thursday for murdering a pair of British holidaymakers on a Thai island, in a case that sullied the kingdom’s reputation as a tourist haven and raised ques
Two Myanmar migrants were sentenced to death Thursday for murdering a pair of British holidaymakers on a Thai island, in a case that sullied the kingdom’s reputation as a tourist haven and raised questions over its justice system. Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Tun were found guilty of killing David Miller, 24, and the rape and murder of Hannah Witheridge, 23, whose battered bodies were found on a beach on the southern diving resort of Koh Tao in September last year. Delivering the verdict at a court on neighbouring Koh Samui, an unnamed judge said the case pivoted on “DNA evidence from both suspects”, citing forensic traces from the accused found on Witheridge’s body.
Throughout the trial prosecutors insisted their evidence against the men was rock solid. But the defence, who swiftly vowed to appeal, have accused the police of bungling their investigation from the outset and using the migrant men — both aged 22 — as scapegoats. Investigators were accused of failing to properly collect and preserve DNA samples and declining to test key pieces of evidence, such as Witheridge’s clothes, or allow independent examination of the samples.
The migrant workers, who were shackled in court, were grim-faced as the verdict was delivered, while the mother of one of them wailed from the gallery. The men were arrested on October 2 after police probe which saw authorities come under intense pressure to solve a case that shocked the Thai public. Miller was struck by a single blow and left to drown in shallow surf while Witheridge was raped and then bludgeoned to death with a garden hoe.
