Last September, the director of the Central Institute of Forensic Science, an agency under Thailand’s justice ministry, told the court that DNA found on the hoe belonged to two persons other than Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun.
Advertisement
American Airlines will apply for Miami to Cuba flights
Thirty more flights a day would more than double current US air traffic to Cuba but it may take years to reach that number. Cuba warns the measures will not work until the trade embargo is lifted so Cuba can operate in dollars.
Backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were found dead on a beach on Koh Tao in September 2014. It remains unknown if the attorneys will appeal.
Obama hits gym before returning to vacation home
President Obama made his vacation debut for the press on day three while playing golf at Mid Pacific Country Club in Lanikai. Mr Obama will spend Christmas and New Year in his home state of Hawaii, with his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha.
The judge said there was no weight to the two men’s claims that they had been tortured. Mr Miller’s brother said justice had now “been delivered”.
Dallas, Houston Schools Receive E-mail Threat
Students who had already arrived at school were being supervised until parents could pick them up, officials said. Authorities are still trying to track down the person responsible for making threats to Plainfield High School.
Miss Witheridge’s family were not present in Thailand for the verdict, though Mr Miller’s were.
The court, on the island of Samui, agreed and found the two men – both 22 – guilty of murder and sentenced them to death.
The investigation has been a muddled affair. In the immediate aftermath of the murder, the scene was not properly sealed and police officers moved at least one of the bodies, potentially corrupting evidence.
DNA test was also carried out as an evidence against the accused. That unexplained discrepancy inevitably raises suspicion that perhaps the result was manipulated.
The defence said that the DNA found on a garden hoe police say was the murder weapon did not belong to the defendants.
The broadcaster reported that the men retracted their confession, claiming they had been tortured by the police.
Andy Hall, an activist working with the defense team, said the two men were found guilty on all counts. This investigation was a shambles from the beginning.
He said: “The defendants have said today, whatever the decision, they accept the decision but they believe very strongly that one day the truth in this case will come out”.
The judges on Thursday said there was no evidence that either had been tortured.
“It will be named the “Hannah Witheridge Award for Clinical Excellence”.
“Had her life not been tragically and unnecessarily cut short, she would now have completed her Master’s degree in Speech and Language therapy and would be about to embark on a fulfilling and worthwhile career. But we will try to help however we can”.
Mr Miller, 24, was originally from Jersey and studying civil and structural engineering at Leeds University.
Our 24 years of memories and his beaming smile will always be cherished. David was intelligent, hard-working, he was caring, inclusive, enthusiastic and fun. He irreplaceable to us. That led to speculation that influential members of the Koh Tao community may have been involved in their deaths.
In a statement released after the verdict, Miss Witheridge’s family described their feelings as a “whirlwind of emotions and difficulties”. The Guardian reported that an appeal would be made but the process can take months. “We now need time, as a family, to digest the outcome of the trial and figure out the most appropriate way to tell our story”, the statement read.
“It is our opinion that the evidence against Wai Phyo and Zaw Lin is absolutely overwhelming”, said Michael Miller.
They raped to satisfy their selfish desires and murdered to cover up that fact. They attended the opening of the trial in July when they said they “simply want to see justice done fairly and openly”.
Mr Miller acknowledged that initially when Lin and Phyo were brought forward as suspects, the family was unsure.
The two men are expected to appeal. It was easy to conclude they might be scapegoats.
“We believe what happened today represents justice for Hannah and David”, said Miller. We respect this court and its decision completely.
“[David] was hacked down from behind, dragged into the sea and left to die”.
Miller’s parents and brother were at the court on Koh Samui but Witheridge’s relatives did not make the journey to Thailand.
Advertisement
“Our lives have been changed forever”.
