Australian man charged with murder after Thai teenager found dead in suitcase near Pattaya railway
Simon Peter Carman, 46, was stopped at Bangkok airport as he prepared to board a flight to Perth. Police say CCTV footage shows him leaving a Pattaya apartment with a large suitcase hours after entering with 17-year-old Tunchanok Donhomla.
The victim and the discovery
Tunchanok Donhomla, known as "Cake", was 17 and the only child of a family from Kalasin province. She had been reported missing at 17:00 local time on Friday. In the early hours of Saturday, police found her naked body crammed inside a black suitcase discarded near a railway line in Pattaya. Officers said the body showed clear signs of violence.
Surveillance footage
CCTV recordings from an apartment building in Pattaya show Carman entering with the teenager at 03:34 on Thursday morning. Later that evening, at 21:34, he was filmed leaving alone, pulling a large black suitcase. He then loaded the suitcase onto a motorcycle and drove toward the railway line where the body was later discovered.
- Carman and Donhomla enter Pattaya apartment building
- Carman leaves alone with large black suitcase
- Donhomla reported missing
- Carman arrested at Bangkok airport
- Body found in suitcase near railway line
Arrest at the airport
Police obtained an arrest warrant and alerted immigration authorities. Carman was detained at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, about 150 km north of Pattaya, as he was about to board a Jetstar flight to Perth. According to some reports, immigration officers stopped him on Friday evening around 21:30; other accounts place the formal arrest at 01:15 on Saturday. Officers noted visible scratch marks on his neck and arms. The body was found roughly 15 minutes after the arrest.
Suspect's statements
Carman initially denied the charges but, according to local media, confessed after being shown the surveillance footage and led police to the suitcase. He has been charged with murder, concealing a corpse to hide the cause of death, and abduction of a minor over 15 for indecent purposes. In a video recorded during detention, he addressed the victim's family:
He also reportedly told police he had agreed to pay the teenager 1,000 baht (about $30) for sex but offered only 500 baht, leading to an argument, and claimed she disappeared while he slept. He has pleaded not guilty, asserting self-defence.I'm sorry for what happened to your daughter. It was beyond my control. I know you will be very sad, angry... so am I.
Family's grief and calls for justice
The victim's father, Thongchai Donhomla, 46, said his daughter grew up without a mother and always helped him.
Her stepmother, Oradee Bussarakum, demanded the maximum penalty.I am deeply saddened. My daughter had no mother, she managed on her own and always helped me.
Thailand still carries the death penalty for certain crimes, though executions are rare. The court date has not yet been set.I told police I want him executed. As a mother, I don't know what else to say... I just want him to answer fully for what he did.
