The battered bodies of Miss Witheridge, 23, and Mr Miller, 24, were discovered on the idyllic holiday island of Koh Tao on September 15 a year ago.
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The two migrants, who had entered Thailand illegally and were working on the island, were arrested about two weeks after the murders.
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Their lawyers point to the fact the DNA found on the hoe did not match either of the suspects and say forensic gathering techniques were riddled with errors. But they soon retracted those confessions, insisting they were made under duress, a charge the police deny.
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The defense had gotten so bad recently that Mitchell was forced to return the veteran Prince to the starting lineup for stability. The others are also on borrowed time now as they are also already up there in age just like Bryant, who is now 37 years old.
The court, however, put aside minor details, focusing principally on personal accounts and physical evidence.
KOH SAMUI, Thailand (AP) A Thai court on Thursday sentenced two Myanmar migrants to death for the murder of two British backpackers on a resort island a year ago, in a case that raised questions about police competence and the judicial system in Thailand. The two Myanmar migrants could face the death penalty if convicted.
Prosecutors said DNA evidence collected from cigarette butts, a condom and the bodies of the victims linked Lin and Phyo to the killings. Win Zaw Htun’s mother cried loudly and then fainted as wardens took her son away.
He said the evidence against the accused was “absolutely overwhelming”, and he went on to describe his brother David as “irreplaceable”.
Sue Miller, left, Ian Miller, bottom right, and Michael Miller, top right, family members of British backpacker David Miller, arrive at court in Koh Samui, Thailand, Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015.
The family of Miss Witheridge did not travel to Thailand for the verdicts.
FILE – Two workers from Myanmar (wearing helmets and handcuffs), suspected of killing two British tourists on the island of Koh Tao last month, stand near Thai police officers during a re-enactment of the alleged crime.
The accused retracted their initial confessions saying police had tortured them, but Mr Miller’s brother said justice had now “been delivered”.
Speaking before the verdicts were announced, Andy Hall, an worldwide affairs adviser with the Migrant Worker Rights Network (MWRN) which has represented the defendants said the two suspects felt “confident” about the hearing.
The killings tarnished the image of the country’s tourism industry, which was already struggling to recover after the May 2014 coup and imposition of martial law.
Meanwhile, relatives of Hannah Witheridge, 23, previously said they were suffering the “same indescribable agony” as the family of of the 24-year-old after the bodies of the young Britons were found in Koh Tao in September last year.
Hannah Witheridge and David Miller.
Miss Witheridge’s family were not present in Thailand for the verdict, though Mr Miller’s were.
As is customary in Thailand, where trials have no jury, a judge delivered the verdict and sentence and said the DNA tests by investigators were carried out to acceptable standards and the DNA found on Witheridge matched that of the defendants.
Once the arrests were made, the body blows to the police and courts kept on coming.
One of the defendants, Win Zaw Htun, testified that he was tortured, beaten and threatened so he would confess.
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The group has been helping the two defendants in the case. “We have seen several high-profile cases where lower court verdicts were set aside precisely on grounds of questionability of the evidence”.
