An Australian man accused of killing a Thai teenager says he “did nothing wrong” and placed her body in a suitcase because he does not trust police.
Simon Peter Carman, a 45-year-old truck driver from southern Perth, is accused of murdering 17-year-old Tunchanok “Cake” Donhomla in Thailand.
Ms Donhomla’s naked body was discovered inside a black suitcase near railway tracks on the outskirts of Pattaya on June 27.
CCTV footage showed her holding hands with Carman before the pair entered the foyer of his condominium two days earlier.
Carman was arrested at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport moments before he was due to board a Jetstar flight bound for Perth.
Speaking to ABC’s Foreign Correspondent in an interview broadcast on Tuesday night, Carman claimed he acted in self-defence after Ms Donhomla attacked him with a knife.
He has given Thai courts the same account and pleaded not guilty to four charges, including murder, concealing a corpse and abducting a minor for indecent purposes.
“I do not know how she died,” Carman told the ABC from behind bars at Pattaya Remand Prison.
Simon Peter Carman, 45, is accused of murdering 17-year-old Tunchanok “Cake” Donhomla (above) in Pattaya, Thailand
Carman (above) said Ms Donhomla attacked him with a knife and claimed he hid her body in a suitcase because he does not “trust the police”
Asked why he failed to contact authorities after the alleged confrontation, Carman said he feared he would be held responsible.
“I didn’t call police because I don’t trust the police,” he said.
“I didn’t want the body in my condo and I didn’t know what to do with the body because I could not phone the police. I didn’t know what to do.”
Parts of the exclusive interview were released in August, ahead of Carman’s first court appearance earlier this month.
Carman sought bail, arguing that he was not a flight risk, but prosecutors opposed the application.
The case is scheduled to return to court on October 12.
During the ABC interview, Carman denied knowing that Ms Donhomla was underage and described his time in custody as a “horrible experience”.
“I haven’t had any sleep since the young lady killed herself,” he said.
Carman (centre) was arrested at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport moments before he was due to board a Jetstar flight to Perth
“When I first saw her on the street, she was with two other friends.
‘I honestly do not know why she followed me home.’
When asked to describe what happened, Carman claimed he gave the 17-year-old 500 baht (AU$21) but she threatened him with a knife for more money.
‘I consistently told her, ‘Put the knife down’ and she didn’t. When she eventually did, she went limp,’ he said.
‘I had her right wrist in my left hand like that and when she eventually dropped it, it was too late.
‘I could physically see that she’d stopped breathing.’
Carman added that he was ‘deeply sad’ about the young girl’s death but insisted it was ‘unavoidable’.
Ms Donhomla’s father, Thongchai, last month told Seven News he didn’t ‘want to hear his apology’.
Ms Donhomla’s (above) autopsy revealed she ‘had a brain injury and she suffocated’
‘If he is truly a man, then if he has done something, he should have the courage to accept responsibility for it,’ Mr Donhomla said.
‘I had only one child. We placed all our hopes in our child and now they are gone.
‘I don’t ask for much. I just hope my child gets the justice she deserves.’
An autopsy found Ms Donhomla ‘had a brain injury and she suffocated’.
‘She had no other injuries,’ Colonel Anek Srathongyoo from Pattaya City Police said.
‘We also collected Simon [Carman’s] DNA and matched it to DNA found on Cake’s.’
Nine days before her death, Ms Donhomla travelled from her home in Thailand’s north, about 600km to the bustling city of Pattaya.
She wanted a holiday to ‘see the beach’ and visit friends, promising her family she would return soon.
Thai police alleged Carman had already hidden Ms Donhomla’s remains in a suitcase (above) when her friends became concerned about her whereabouts
Ms Donhomla had given friends Carman’s address after the pair met up on Jomtien Beach in the early hours of June 25.
A concerned friend reported the teen missing to police the following day and later confronted Carman at his condo after she disappeared.
Police alleged Carman had already suffocated Ms Donhomla and put her body in a suitcase, abandoning it a short scooter ride away.
A murder conviction in Thailand can result in the death penalty or a jail sentence of 15 to 20 years.
– READ MORE: Inside Thai jail cell where accused killer Simon Carman is being held
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