Case 220

Hannah Witheridge & David Miller

*** Content Warning: sexual assault ***

When the bodies of British tourists 23-year-old Hannah Witheridge and 24-year-old David Miller were found brutally murdered on the remote Thai island of Koh Tao, the police immediately concluded that the killer had to be a foreigner, as a Thai person couldn’t be capable of such brutality. 

Migrants Wai Phyo and Zaw Lin eventually confessed to the crime after DNA allegedly linked them to the scene, but could the evidence be trusted? As accusations of police corruption and local mafia cover-ups took hold, more suspicious deaths emerged that would earn Koh Tao the undesirable moniker of ‘Death Island.’

CREDITS

 

Casefile Presents

 

EPISODE:

Research & writing – Elsha McGill

Creative direction – Milly Raso

Narration – Anonymous Host

 

MUSIC:

‘Flatline intro’ and ‘Come play with me’ intro and outro – www.dl-sounds.com

Audio production – Mike Migas 

Scoring – Mike Migas and Andrew Joslyn

 

OTHER:

Logo and website design – Paulina Szymanska

 

PREMIUM

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RESOURCES

 

COURT DOCUMENTS

Koh Samui Provincial Court No. 2040 / 2557

 

BOOKS

The Curse of Turtle Island: The true story of Thailand’s Backpacker Murders Suzanne Buchanan

 

VIDEOS

Murder in Paradise: The Murder of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller 

Backpacker’s terror after ‘Thai mafia death threat’

CCTV footage of murdered tourists released

Two Burmese arrested in Koh Tao murder case

Chilling Koh Tao attack by masked men at the same spot where Hannah & David murdered 

Koh Tao Murder Death Island – Ian Yarwood’s YouTube channel

 

ONLINE ARTICLES

The mother of British backpacker Hannah Witheridge begged her not to go to Thailand – News.com.au

Thailand murders: British brothers questioned – BBC News 

Thailand beach murders: Poignant picture shows smiling David Miller on boat during fateful holiday – The Mirror

Forensic reports into British murders in Thailand leaked to local media – Sydney Morning Herald 

Thai police eye bisexual link in tourist double murder – New York Post 

Thai motorbike gang mugged British women night before backpacker couple were murdered on Koh Tao island – The Telegraph

Thailand’s paradise island murder mystery – BBC News 

Thailand: Murder in the Land of Smiles – The Diplomat 

Thailand beach murders: families pay tribute to British tourists – The Guardian

Thailand murders: two British brothers questioned – The Guardian 

Thailand backpacker murders: David Miller and Hannah Witheridge – two lives cut short – The Guardian

‘This is how we killed them’ – The Daily Mail

Concerns over trial of Burmese men charged with murder of UK tourists – The Guardian

National Crime Agency Helped Get Two Men Sentenced To Death In Thailand – BuzzFeed News

Thailand backpfacker murders: Victim’s father weeps at photos – BBC News

Universal doubt clouds ‘perfect’ Koh Tao murder investigation – Coconuts Bangkok

Koh Tao defence: Suspects must be acquitted – Bangkok Post  

Thailand murders: Two men found guilty and face death for UK killings – BBC News

Outcry over death penalties upheld for Koh Tao murders – Foundation for Education and Development 

This Septic Isle: Backpackers, Bloodshed and the Secretive World of Koh Tao – Time

Family’s Agonising Search for Information into Son’s Thailand Death – Chiang Rai Times 

Nick Pearson Thailand death: Mum believes son was murdered – BBC News

Thailand beach death: Parents convinced son murdered – and his killing covered up to protect tourism – The Mirror 

Brits ambushed by masked men on Death Island beach where UK tourists were killed – The Mirror

Thai paradise gains reputation as ‘Death Island’ – New York Times 

‘Murder Island’ combed for German cult leader – Bangkok Times

Thailand: Drop cases for online reporting on alleged rape – Human Rights Watch

We want the truth: Our kids all died on Koh Tao ‘death island’ – The Sun

Injustice echoes from all sides two years after Koh Tao murders – Khasod English

 

OTHER

Contesting narratives: the Koh Tao Murders – Erik Cohen for Asian Anthropology

The psychology of a rapist – DW

Help support our beautiful Hannah – GoFundMe

Anonymous video transcript

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