The family of a 17-year-old Thai girl whose body was found in a suitcase in Pattaya said they were devastated by her death, for which an Australian man has been arrested and charged with murder, report agencies.
Thai police said they arrested an Australian man in his 40s at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport early on Saturday in connection with the killing in Pattaya, about 150 km (93 miles) east of Bangkok.
The suspect, identified as Simon Peter Carman, faces charges of murder, concealment of a body, moving or destroying a body, and taking a minor for sexual purposes.
Thai police said they reviewed CCTV footage that showed Carman entering a condominium with the girl, then leaving alone hours later carrying a suitcase.
In a post on its official Facebook page, police said he loaded the suitcase onto a motorcycle and rode to a grassy area near a railway line. Police later issued an arrest warrant and arrested Carman at the airport as he prepared to board a flight back to Australia.
In an investigation room at the police station, Carman issued a message to the victim's family before being transferred to the Pattaya Provincial Court.
"I feel bad for what happened to your daughter. It was out of my control," he said.
The victim's father, Thongchai Donhomla, 46, said he was struggling to come to terms with the loss.
"I am deeply saddened. My daughter had no mother, so whenever she wanted anything, she would find a way herself, and she always helped me too," he said.
Her stepmother, Oradee Bussarakum, said she wanted the suspect to face the harshest punishment.
"I told the police I want him executed. As a (step)mother, I don’t know what else to say … I just want him to face the full consequences," she said.
In a statement on social media, the Pattaya Police force said it reviewed CCTV footage that allegedly showed Carman entering a condominium with Donholma at 03:34 on Thursday. Late that evening, he emerged alone "carrying a large suitcase".
The statement said he loaded the bag onto a motorbike before driving towards a railway line.
Officers questioned and arrested Carman at the airport in Bangkok, some 150km (93 miles) north of Pattaya, at 01:15 on Saturday.
The teenager's naked body was found in a suitcase about 15 minutes later, the police force said.
Carman denied murder and further charges related to moving or concealing a body and taking a minor for sexual purposes, and claimed he had acted in self defence.
Media reports state that Carman told police he had agreed to pay Donholma 1,000 baht (US$30) for sexual services, but that they had an argument when they returned to his apartment and he offered only 500 baht.
Thai police told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that Carman also claimed Donhomla had "disappeared from the room" while he was asleep.
In a video recorded while he was in custody, the suspect issued a message to the Donholma's family, saying: "I feel bad for what happened to your daughter. It was out of my control. "I know you'll be very sad, upset… same [as] me."
He added: "Please tell other girls… just to be careful."
Colonel Anek Srathongyoo, Superintendent of the Pattaya City Police Station, told the ABC that Carman "has fingernail scratches across his body that are consistent with a struggle, but he denies killing her".
END/AGENCIES/ASA
