UK police acted illegally in Koh Tao case
Re: “UK police broke law in case of British backpackers murdered in Thailand”, the Guardian, yesterday.
“The UK’s National Crime Agency admits it acted unlawfully when it gave information to Thai police that helped send two men to death row for murdering two British backpackers,” the Guardian reports.
In a word, diabolical. There is not a single piece of evidence in this case that proves beyond any doubt that these Burmese lads currently on death row raped and killed anyone. The evidence presented simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny, and the fact that the only evidence that was scrutinised (the murder weapon) didn’t have any trace of the supposed killers’ DNA on it, NONE.
This is a fit up, pure and simple, and a horribly constructed one at that. The fact that the phone evidence has been used in such a way (a way that does not prove either rape or murder) should be another major piece needed to exonerate the two suspects. Shame on the UK authorities for their conduct: an utter disgrace however you spin it.
z42
“Following the murders, the NCA passed Miller’s phone location data to Thai police, enabling prosecutors to say the suspects
were in the same area as their alleged victim,” says the report.
This seems dubious evidence at best, as many other people would have been in the general area as well. Including a certain headman’s son. Shameful that a piece of evidence illegally obtained was a critical factor, and also shows the desperation of the Thais to convict them, especially since they had no real evidence of their own.
darksidedog
We will never know the truth now: are they guilty or not? One thing however is clear, they were not proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt as required by law.
soalbundy
“Evidence and intelligence was used selectively against Lin and Phyo,” says rights group Reprieve, “and the NCA material potentially pointed to other suspects that could have bolstered the defence case. However, this information was not given to the defence team.”
Way to go, UK police! You have likely helped to convict two innocent men.
What a proud day.
Samui Bodoh
No matter what happened, someone was going to get fitted, and it wasn’t going to be the real culprits. Remember? “No Thai could do this.”
Too many tourist dollars on the line.
over it
ThaiVisa
