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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/04/thai-backpacker-murders-burmese-suspects-charged-hannah-witheridge-david-miller
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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Thailand lays backpacker murder charges against Burmese suspects | Thailand lays backpacker murder charges against Burmese suspects |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Two Burmese men have been formally charged with the murders of British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller in Thailand after a long and much-criticised police investigation. | |
| Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo, both 21, were arrested a fortnight after Witheridge, 23, from Norfolk, and Miller, 24, from Jersey, were found dead on a beach on Koh Tao, a popular holiday island in Thailand. | Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo, both 21, were arrested a fortnight after Witheridge, 23, from Norfolk, and Miller, 24, from Jersey, were found dead on a beach on Koh Tao, a popular holiday island in Thailand. |
| Police said the suspects, who worked in bars on the island, had confessed. However, the men soon retracted these admissions, saying they had been obtained through torture. | |
| Rights groups, including Amnesty International, have expressed alarm at the investigation, as has the British government, which sent Metropolitan police detectives to Thailand to review the case. | Rights groups, including Amnesty International, have expressed alarm at the investigation, as has the British government, which sent Metropolitan police detectives to Thailand to review the case. |
| The process of formally charging the migrant workers had been much delayed, with prosecutors repeatedly sending back the police file on the case for more clarification. | The process of formally charging the migrant workers had been much delayed, with prosecutors repeatedly sending back the police file on the case for more clarification. |
| However, officials and the men’s legal team said they had been charged on Thursday by prosecutors at the court in Koh Samui, the larger island adjoining Koh Tao, where they are in prison. The case had been scheduled for Thursday afternoon, but in chaotic scenes the hearing was moved forward, meaning it was heard before Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo could be brought to the court in time. | However, officials and the men’s legal team said they had been charged on Thursday by prosecutors at the court in Koh Samui, the larger island adjoining Koh Tao, where they are in prison. The case had been scheduled for Thursday afternoon, but in chaotic scenes the hearing was moved forward, meaning it was heard before Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo could be brought to the court in time. |
| Both men are charged with murdering Miller, who was struck on the head and left to drown in the surf, raping and murdering Witheridge, who died from severe head injuries, and with entering Thailand illegally and staying in the country without permission. | Both men are charged with murdering Miller, who was struck on the head and left to drown in the surf, raping and murdering Witheridge, who died from severe head injuries, and with entering Thailand illegally and staying in the country without permission. |
| Wai Phyo is also charged with stealing Miller’s phone and sunglasses. | Wai Phyo is also charged with stealing Miller’s phone and sunglasses. |
| Andy Hall, a British rights activist who assists Burmese migrant workers in Thailand and who is working with the men’s defence team, said the case was unexpectedly brought forward, meaning the suspects were not in court to be charged. They would plead at a subsequent hearing on Monday, he added, and were expected to deny all charges. | |
| Hall and other rights organisations have expressed concern throughout the murder investigation, given previous cases where Thai police have falsely accused Burmese workers of high-profile crimes. Even before Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo were arrested General Prayuth Chan-ocha, Thailand’s prime minister since a coup in May, said migrants were the most likely culprits. | Hall and other rights organisations have expressed concern throughout the murder investigation, given previous cases where Thai police have falsely accused Burmese workers of high-profile crimes. Even before Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo were arrested General Prayuth Chan-ocha, Thailand’s prime minister since a coup in May, said migrants were the most likely culprits. |
| Several Burmese among the 3,000 or so working on Koh Tao also said they had been mistreated by police investigating the murders. | Several Burmese among the 3,000 or so working on Koh Tao also said they had been mistreated by police investigating the murders. |
| As well as the confessions, police say they have DNA evidence linking the men to the scene. However, critics have noted that the section of beach where the bodies were found was trampled by journalists and onlookers the day after the murders before it was sealed off. | |
| Police deny the men were mistreated. On Wednesday the policeman leading the investigation, Maj Gen Suwat Jaewngyodsuk, told Thailand’s National Human Rights Commission “no violence was used”. | |
| Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo have repeatedly insisted on their innocence. At an earlier court hearing on Koh Samui, the pair said they had been playing guitar and drinking on the night in question, and passed the Guardian a handwritten letter requesting help from the families of Witheridge and Miller. | Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo have repeatedly insisted on their innocence. At an earlier court hearing on Koh Samui, the pair said they had been playing guitar and drinking on the night in question, and passed the Guardian a handwritten letter requesting help from the families of Witheridge and Miller. |
| On Tuesday they released another letter, asking for the Britons’ friends, or any other witnesses, to come forward. | |
| The British detectives who went to Thailand have yet to complete their report, which will be shared in the first instance with the victims’ families. | The British detectives who went to Thailand have yet to complete their report, which will be shared in the first instance with the victims’ families. |
| Hall said now that the prosecution had begun the victims’ families had the right under Thai law to join the prosecution and bring their own witnesses. The suspects’ legal team are also now permitted to request documents from Britain, he said. | |
| Hall said he had expected the men to be tried: “This was always likely from the beginning, and the fact it’s taken so long is probably down to the input from rights groups and others. But we never expected anything else. | |
| “We’re hopeful that the court will give justice in the case. The prosecution is making their case but it’s ultimately up to the court to make a decision. It’s going to be an uphills struggle but I think the judge will make a just decision in the end, based on the evidence.” |