Thai suitcase murder suspect pleads not guilty
An Australian man accused of killing a 17-year-old Thai girl and hiding her body in a suitcase has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Simon Peter Carman, 45, entered the plea after appearing in court in Thailand on Friday, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Simon Carman is accused of murdering Thanchanok Donhomla. Supplied
The Perth man is accused of killing 17-year-old Thanchanok “Cake” Donhomla after allegedly picking her up in Pattaya in the early hours of June 25 and taking her back to his accommodation.
Her body was found two days later inside a suitcase dumped near railway tracks in Pattaya.
Carman was arrested at Bangkok’s international airport on June 27, the same day Thanchanok’s body was discovered.
He has continually maintained he did not murder the teenager, claiming he acted in self-defence after she threatened him with a knife inside his room. He also insisted the pair never had sex.
Carman claimed he tried to stop Thanchanok from stabbing him during a struggle.
Carman also said he did not know why Thanchanok had followed him home and said he had given her 500 baht, about $21, before she allegedly threatened him with a knife.
CCTV from Carman’s building allegedly shows a man and woman, identified by police as Carman and Thanchanok, walking hand-in-hand through the lobby early on June 25.
Later that night, footage allegedly shows Carman returning to the lobby with a large suitcase and leaving on a motorbike before returning a short time later.
Thai police have previously said Thanchanok suffered a brain injury and died of suffocation.
Carman has denied the charges against him, which include murder, concealing a corpse and abducting a minor for indecent purposes.
If convicted of murder, he could face the death penalty. The case will return to court on October 12.
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