Thailand’s Justice Minister to re-open Japanese tourist murder case

PHOTO: Chiang Rai Times

Somsak Thepsutin, Thailand’s Justice Minister, says a 12 year old unsolved murder case will be re-opened.

In 2007, Tomoko Kawashita, a 25 year old Japanese tourist, was found in Wat Saphan Hin National Park in Sukothai, central Thailand, with her throat slit and evidence that she had been raped.

No match was ever found for the DNA extracted from semen found in the victim’s body, even though investigators at the time collected samples from 300 people living in the area.

However, it’s understood that some evidence collected from the victim’s clothes did lead to one suspect, who efused to provide his DNA and has since died. Minister Somsak says there’s a possibility this person was related to the murderer and that investigators will visit the family.

Minister Somsak made his pledge to re-open the case yesterday, after visiting the Institute of Forensic Science in Sukothai.

“Even though the victim’s family has not called on the government to solve this murder case, we have told Japanese authorities that we are not ignoring it. We have to show that the Justice Ministry is working hard to find the murderer.”

SOURCE: The Nation