Backpacker murderers' fatal mistake
Thai police have revealed the fatal mistake made by two men accused of the murder and rape of British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller on the tranquil holiday island of Koh Tao.
Suspect Zaw Rim, 21, took Miller's phone from his shorts pocket, according to national police chief Somyat Pumpanmuang.
He planned to keep the phone for his personal use before discovering it was not compatible with Thailand's mobile phone networks.
He allegedly then decided to smash the black iPhone 4 before discarding it in his home, the Bangkok Post has reported.
Zaw Rim and Win, both 21, have been detained in Koh Samui prison since Saturday after allegedly admitting that they had raped and killed Ms Witheridge after watching her and Mr Miller hugging and kissing on September 15.
Both workers from Myanmar have been charged with premeditated murder, rape, theft and illegal entry into Thailand.
The men were charged with the murders of both Britons - a charge which carries the death penalty - after their DNA matched samples taken from Ms Witheridge’s body.
The breakthrough followed intense scrutiny of Thai authorities, which was accused - in criticism led by the British media - of bungling the investigation in the days after the crime.
On Friday investigators took the arrested men to the island to re-enact the crime scene, a common practice in Thai murder cases.
Hundreds of onlookers watched as the handcuffed pair - wearing bullet-proof vests and white helmets to protect them from angry locals - walked along the beach where the Britons were found dead, surrounded by scores of police officers.
Thai authorities also dismissed concerns that they had arrested scapegoats when questioned by reporters, after the intense international spotlight on the investigation.
"I would like to affirm that this case was not the arrest of scapegoats as it could be proved from the DNA found on the victim," Prayut Chan-o-Cha, Thailand's prime minister, told reporters on Friday.
Morning news break - October 06
