Anonymous hacks Thai police websites over death sentences

Thailand murders: two British men now 'possible suspects'

17 September

Two British men are reportedly being questioned by police in Bangkok in connection with the murders of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller on the island of Koh Tao.

Police in Thailand told the BBC that the two men, who spent time with the victims in the days before they died, are now "possible suspects".

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The men, believed to be brothers, have not been formally detained but have been prevented from leaving the country. The Daily Mirror suggests they are already being questioned by police.

Witheridge, 23, and Miller, 24, were found dead with deep wounds to the head and face on Monday on a rocky section of shore near to a beach party. Police said a blood-stained hoe found near the bodies was suspected to be the murder weapon. The victims' bodies have been flown to Bangkok for forensic tests.

On the night of the murder, police initially said they were urgently hunting a British suspect who they believed had fled on an overnight ferry to Bangkok. However, they later said he was "probably not a major suspect" and began focusing their investigation on local Burmese migrant workers.

Police released still images from CCTV cameras in the area, which they claimed showed Witheridge and Miller leaving a bar hand-in-hand at around 1.00am, just hours before their bodies were discovered.

Officers said they wanted to locate an "Asian-looking man", also captured on CCTV, who they considered a prime suspect in the killings. It was also reported that a number of Burmese migrant workers had been detained for questioning.

However, doubt has since been cast on whether it is actually Witheridge and Miller in the CCTV stills and police appear to have renewed their focus on the two British men in Bangkok. One senior officer told the BBC the investigation's change in tack was the result of new forensic evidence.

Relatives and friends of both victims have paid tributes to the pair. Witheridge's family has said she was a "beautiful, intelligent, loving young woman who poured joy into the lives of all who knew her", while Miller was described by his family as a "hard-working, bright and conscientious" young man who would be "sorely, sorely missed".

Thailand murders: police searching for 'multiple suspects'

16 September

Police in Thailand say they are now looking for a "number of suspects" after two Britons were murdered on the beach of Koh Tao.

David Miller, 24, from Jersey and Hannah Witheridge, 23, from Norfolk, were found dead on the small island off the coast of Thailand on Monday. Police believe the "gruesome attack" took place after the pair left a local bar late on Sunday night.

A garden hoe, believed to be the murder weapon, was discovered nearby. Witheridge is thought to have been raped during the attack, according to local reports.

Police had previously reported that they were looking for a British friend of the pair who left the island soon after the bodies were discovered. They still want to speak to the man, but say he is "probably not a major suspect", according to the BBC.

Instead, their investigation is now focussed on members of the migrant community from Burma that live and work on the island.

The Foreign Office has confirmed that staff from its embassy in Bangkok have arrived on the island. "The Embassy are urgently seeking information from the local authorities and Consular staff stand ready to provide assistance to friends and family at this tragic time," a spokesperson told Sky News.

According to the Foreign Office, 11 Britons have been murdered in Thailand since 2009.

Friends and family have paid tribute to the pair across social media. "My best friend and the love of my life. We were meant to have so much more time together but I'll continue loving you everyday forever," Mr Miller's girlfriend Jessy Howorth said.

Two Burmese men have been found guilty of murdering a pair of British tourists found dead on a beach in Thailand last year.

The bodies of backpackers Hannah Witheridge, 23, and 24-year-old David Miller, were discovered on Koh Tao island, a popular beauty spot, in September 2014. They had been bludgeoned to death with a blunt object, thought to be a garden hoe. Witheridge had also been raped during the attack.

Two workers from a nearby bar, both migrants from Myanmar, were arrested and charged with the murders. DNA recovered from the scene matched that of Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo, prosecutors claimed, although the defence argued that DNA from the alleged murder weapon did not match either of the accused.

Nevertheless, three Thai judges found the pair guilty of the murders and sentenced them to death by lethal injection. Thailand has not executed anyone since 2009, according to [1]Death Penalty Worldwide, although more than 600 prisoners are currently on the country's death row.

Concerns have been raised about the case against Lin and Phyo, who say they were bullied into making a false confession. Burmese migrants in Thailand have complained of mistreatment at the hands of the Thai authorities, and the activist group which represented the men in court says their confessions were part of the "systematic abuse" of migrants in the country.

Andy Hall, speaking on behalf of the Migrant Worker Rights Network, said that the group "strongly disagrees" with the court's decision and intends to launch an appeal.

"The defence team have had access to all the information in this case and the information we saw did not comply with international standards," Hall said in a statement.

The family of Hannah Witheridge, who was from Norfolk and had been studying speech therapy, told the media that they needed "to digest the outcome of the trial verdict". Victim David Miller's brother Michael said that his family were satisfied with the quality of the Thai investigation, which he called "methodical and thorough".

"Justice is what has been delivered today", he told the [2]BBC.

[1] http://www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org/country-search-post.cfm?country=Thailand

[2] http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35173688

TAGS: Thailand, Burma, migrants, Hannah Witheridge, David Miller