Thai murder: Burmese suspects charged this morning

Thursday 04 December 2014

Two Burmese workers have been charged with the murder of Jerseyman David Miller and another backpacker from the UK in Thailand earlier this year.

The workers – Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun – were formally charged this morning, but were not in court to hear the indictment being put against them.

They were arrested two months ago over the deaths of David (24) and Hannah Witheridge (23) on a beach on the Thai diving resort island of Koh Tao.

David was a popular engineering student who was leading out to work in Australia for a mining company – in a tribute to him after his death his heartbroken family described him as “hard-working, bright and conscientious, with everything to look forward to”.

The Thai police investigation into the brutal murders has been hugely controversial – it has been alleged that the two men were beaten and tortured into confessing, and that they tried to recount their admissions of guilt. UK police were sent to Thailand to support the case, and the Burmese government asked Thai police to reopen their investigation over fears that the two men had been made scapegoats for the murders.

Last month, an online petition at change.org was handed to Downing Street last month after more than 100,000 people signed up to demand an independent investigation into the murders, and Amnesty International have called for an investigation into claims the two suspects were threatened with electrocution.

The Attorney General's office in Thailand this morning said both suspects had been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, rape, criminal cover-up, illegally entering Thailand and staying in the country without permission, and that Zaw Lin was also charged with theft.