THAILAND: Two men sentenced to death yesterday for murdering and raping a British backpacker in Thailand will have their sentence reduced to life imprisonment, a British legal expert predicted last night.
Mark Stephens, a barrister with London law firm Finers, Stephens, Innocent, believes the Thai judiciary acted out of a "cultural feeling of national disgrace" over the killing of 21-year-old Katherine Horton.
Bualoi Posit (23) and Wichai Somkhaoyai (24) face lethal injection for attacking Ms Horton, who disappeared while holidaying in Koh Samui with her friend Ruth Adams on New Year's Day. Her body was later found floating in the sea.
After the sentencing, the Reading University student's family thanked Thai police for quickly catching the culprits and helping them "seek an end to the uncertainties of this tragedy".
The British Foreign Office confirmed the men have 30 days to submit an appeal - but if they do not, an appeal will automatically be submitted by the court on their behalf.
No death sentence has been carried out in Thailand since 2003, although there are more than 1,000 people on death row there, according to Amnesty International.
Mr Stephens, who studied the Thai legal system for the International Bar Association, believes yesterday's sentence will be reduced to life imprisonment at the Court of Appeal, as is customary for guilty pleas to murder.
"I think part of the reason why they were sentenced to death is because the judge knew that [ the sentence would get reduced]."
Miss Horton, from Cardiff, was attacked as she spoke to her mother on her mobile phone.