Man charged with murder after girl's body found in suitcase in Thailand

An Australian man has been charged with the murder of a teenage girl in Thailand after her body was found in a suitcase by police on Saturday.

Simon Peter Carman, who is in his 40s, was seen on CCTV holding hands with Thai national Tunchanok Donhomla, 17, as they entered an apartment block in the city of Pattaya, in the early hours of Thursday morning.

The footage showed him leaving the condominium hours later on his own with a suitcase, before travelling with it on a motorbike to a roadside near a railway line.

Carman, who denies the charges and claims he acted in self-defence, was arrested at Bangkok's international airport Suvarnabhumi as he was trying to flee the country, police said.

Alongside murder, he has been charged with concealment of a body, moving or ​destroying a body, and taking a minor for sexual purposes.

Tunchanok, nicknamed 'Cake', was from Kalasin province in the north-east region of Isan, one of the poorest parts of Thailand.

Her father told local media he collapsed on hearing the news.

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"She's my only daughter. I've raised her since she was a baby and I love her very much. I warned her if she was going to Pattaya, that if anyone tried to lure her to sell herself for money, not to do that," Thongchai Donhomla told Thai Channel 8.

"I can't believe it. Even though I'm poor I can still earn money for my child to live and eat."

Her stepmother, Oradee Bussarakum, called for the suspect to face the death penalty in order to "face the full consequences".

Pattaya is a coastal city about 150km south-east of Bangkok, which has a reputation for nightlife and sex tourism.

Prostitution is illegal in Thailand but has long operated in a grey zone where it is tolerated and visible in its major cities.

According to local media, Carman told police he initially offered to pay Tunchanok 1,000 Thai baht (£23) for sex work before haggling her down to 500 baht (£11).

He said scratches on his body were from a "spider".

In a video message recorded by the police and directed to Tunchanok's parents, he said: "I feel bad for what happened to your daughter. It was out of my control.

"I know you'll be very sad, upset, same same me [sic]. It shouldn't have happened and I hope you're OK. I know you're not but I hope.

"And please tell other girls to be not... and just to be careful."

If convicted, Carman could face the death penalty, though executions are rare in Thailand and generally commuted to life imprisonment.

(c) Sky News 2026: Man charged with murder after girl's body found in suitcase in Thailand