Trial of Myanmar duo over tourist murders in Thailand
Print Edition
A Thai policeman described the harrowing moments he discovered the bodies of two British holidaymakers on Koh Tao island as the high-profile trial of two Myanmar migrants charged over their deaths opened yesterday.
Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Tun have both pleaded not guilty to the murder last September of 24-year-old David Miller and the rape and murder of Hannah Witheridge, 23, in a case that has tarnished Thailand’s reputation as a tourist haven.
The two men, who have been in custody on neighboring Koh Samui island since October, arrived at court in a prison van with their feet shackled. They face several charges — including murder, rape and robbery — and if found guilty could face the death penalty.
Family members of the two British backpackers were also present as the trial began and the prosecution questioned their first witness, a policeman who found the tourists’ bruised and battered bodies.
The officer described the awful scene as he discovered the lifeless Miller “face down” on the shallow surf followed by the body of Witheridge further up the beach. Police have said she was raped and beaten.
Their murders, just yards from the main tourist drag in Koh Tao, sent shockwaves across the sleepy idyll in the Gulf of Thailand popular with backpackers and divers.
But the prosecution has been marred by allegations of a bungled investigation with the defense team claiming the migrants, who worked for low wages in the tourism trade, were scapegoated by an under-pressure police force.
One of their key demands has been the opportunity to independently test controversial forensic evidence against their clients. After the opening of the trial the judge said a decision on this would be made today, according to an activist for a migrants group helping to fund the defense case.
Miller’s parents and brother as well as Witheridge’s father and brother were present in court yesterday.
Both families have appealed for privacy from the press for the duration of the trial, which is expected to take place over 18 staggered days between now and September with a verdict due in October.
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