Police have discovered the body of a missing 15-year-old girl who was last seen riding a motorbike with a slain British adolescent.
A shallow tomb containing Suraphltchaya Khamsa was found in a wooded area today about three kilometres from where Woramet Ben Taota, 16, was found on May 7.
Chaiwat ‘Wat’ Boongarin, a convicted felon, has acknowledged to killing the youngster known as Ben while denying killing Suraphltchaya. He did so by stating the boy had stolen drugs from him.
Boongarin, who is in custody, is likely to face the death penalty if convicted of either or both cases.
Ben grew up in a remote village in northern Thailand near Lampang – close to where his body was found -with his Thai mother Ooy Taota. But he has a British father, businessman Stephen Graham, who shares his time between the UK and Thailand, reports the Daily Mail.
The devastated family say Ben and Suraphltchaya have known each other since they were young and ‘were close’ and that police believe Suraphltchaya was dating Boongarin. They suspect Ben got involved with Boongarin and his drugs through her.
They think the girl, who was said to be addicted to methamphetamine pills and getting her supply from the thug, had been used to help lure Ben to Boongarin before they were both killed.
Suraphltchaya’s parents and grandparents identified her body, breaking down in tears when it emerged she’d also been murdered.
Police said she had signs of bruising on her face that suggested she’d been hit a number of times with a hard object.
Speaking about the suspected killer, Mr Graham said he was a prolific drug dealer and an ‘evil’ man.
The boy’s father flew out to Thailand when the tragedy unfolded and on Wednesday confronted Boongarin during a chaotic crime reconstruction.
Mr Campbell yelled ‘look me in the eye, you cowards’ and ‘may you rot in hell’ at the alleged murderer while he was being taken on a ‘perp walk’ or crime reconstruction, which will form evidence for the prosecution.
He told the Mail: ‘Usually I am very English and reserved about my emotions and my anger.
‘But after spending that long flight from the UK thinking about my beloved Ben I was just grabbed by the throat by the situation. I used some terrible words. It just flowed out of me.’
He described his son as polite, charming and handsome, but naive and ‘like all 16-year-olds’ did stupid things and tragically got himself involved with Boongarin.
Through tears, Ben’s mother Ms Taota said her son as her heart and soul.
Suraphltchaya and Ben were last seen together riding a motorcycle on Saturday evening, May 6, after visiting her grandfather earlier in the afternoon.
Ben was found dead the next morning with severe head wounds. His body had been dumped in woodland but had not been buried. His phone and cash from his wallet were missing.
A police search for Suraphltchaya followed as investigators battled to piece together the case.
Boongarin was arrested after being identified from CCTV riding a black Honda motorcycle around the area at the time of the death.
He confessed to the killing and said his motive was revenge for a drug deal in which the youngster had stolen tablets. He said, however, someone else killed Suraphltchaya.
Police major general Mongkol Sampawapol, commander of Lampang Provincial Police, said: ‘We suspect that the suspect is responsible for both murders.
‘However, police will also continue investigating the deaths to check if anybody else was involved.
‘The female victim’s body is now being sent to hospital for an autopsy to find traces of rape or sexual assault, because the suspect has a history of these crimes.’