Uthai Dechawiwat

Case record: Uthai Dechawiwat

People

• Uthai Dechawiwat — Thai police officer and former sergeant; defendant.
• Leo Del Pinto — Calgary backpacker; victim; was shot and killed in the village of Pai in Thailand’s Mae Hong Son Province.
• Carly Reisig — fellow Canadian backpacker from Chilliwack, B.C.; was shot and survived; testified.
• Ernie Del Pinto — Leo’s father.
• Clara Del Pinto — Leo’s family member; travelled with Ernie and Madeline.
• Madeline — Leo’s sister; travelled with Ernie.
• Ross Fortune — engaged to one of Del Pinto’s sisters.
• Wanta Dechachiwat — Dechawiwat’s 18-year-old wife; was clubbed to death with a piece of wood.
• Carly Reising — name used in the material for Carly Reisig; shot in her side but later made a full recovery.
• Madeline — Leo’s sister (named as “Madeline” in connection with sentencing).
• Dr. Surasee Kosolnavin — head of the Thai Human Rights Commission.
• Prosecutor Poonbsil Intachai — prosecutor at the court hearing.
• Ms. Duangjai Jipipob — expert witness; reported on alcohol levels.
• Police Colonel Boonrak Gowsombat — expert witness; reported on gunpowder residue.
• Col. Sombat Panya — of Pai district in northern Mae Hong Son.
• Detective/forensic officials mentioned: Dr. Porthip Rojanasund — Thailand forensic pathologist; conducted tests.
• Thai police spokesman — confirmed Dechachiwat was being held for the murder of Wanta Dechawiwat.
• Foreign Affairs in Ottawa — government body involved in communications described.
• Canadian Embassy — requested special hearing in Pai and consecutive days in Chiang Mai.
• Thai National Human Rights Commission — conducted its own investigation, provided witness protection, and ordered separate forensic tests.
• Department of Special Investigations — put in charge of the original murder investigation of Leo Del Pinto after local police tried to interfere.
• Buddhist monks — were to conduct a ceremony at the place where Leo was gunned down.

Timeline

• January 2008 — Leo Del Pinto was gunned down by Dechawiwat in the village of Pai, Mae Hong Son Province; Carly Reisig was also shot but survived.
• January 7, 2008 — Thai police charged an officer, Sgt. Uthai Dechawiwat, with premeditated murder in Leo Del Pinto’s death and “intent to kill” in Carly Reisig’s shooting; the police version and Reisig’s contradiction were described.
• January 9, 2008 — Village residents disputed Carly Reisig’s version of what led to the death of Leo Del Pinto; discussions of intimidation and lack of written report were described.
• September 20, 2010 — Dechawiwat, described as 39, was accused of clubbing his pregnant teenage bride to death; it was reported he had only been married for two weeks and that he was being held for the murder of Wanta Dechawiwat.
• January 28, 2011 — Dechawiwat was sentenced to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to clubbing the death of his 18-year-old pregnant wife.
• March 8, 2012 — Dechachiwat pleaded not guilty to the murder of Canadian tourist Leo Del Pinto in Pai; the court agreed to a special hearing in Pai in July and three consecutive days in Chiang Mai at the request of the Canadian Embassy.
• August 20, 2013 — Dechawiwat was sentenced to 37½ years in prison for murder; his sentence was told to run consecutive to the 25-year sentence.

Background

Uthai Dechawiwat was a Thai police officer and a former sergeant. He had been convicted in another murder case involving Wanta Dechawiwat.

Leo Del Pinto was from Calgary and had been in Thailand. He worked in a tattoo shop as a translator and wanted to teach English in Thailand. He was described as having spent almost six months in Thailand before returning to Calgary in September and as returning to Thailand just last week.

The offence

Killing of Leo Del Pinto and wounding of Carly Reisig

Leo Del Pinto, 25, was gunned down by Dechawiwat in the village of Pai in Thailand’s Mae Hong Son Province in January 2008. Carly Reisig, from Chilliwack, B.C., was shot at the same time but survived.

Police said Del Pinto died early Sunday of two gunshot wounds—one to the face and one to the torso. The police version said the pair had a fight while drinking at a bar; the fight escalated outside and became physical when a police officer tried to intervene.

Dechawiwat told Thai investigators that the pair attacked him when he tried to intervene and that his gun “accidentally went off” three times as he tried to defend himself.

Reisig denied there was any fight. From her hospital bed in northern Thailand, she said she and Del Pinto were talking when a man punched her in the forehead. She said Del Pinto defended her by shoving the man, who got a gun from his motorcycle. She said the two men struggled for control of the gun before the man shot them both. Reisig also denied earlier reports that she was pregnant and said she believed face paint may have angered the man who attacked them.

In addition, villagers disputed Reisig’s account. A journalist based in Bangkok reported that witnesses in Pai said:

• “No, it wasn’t the policeman who struck the first blow. It was Carly, that Carly and Leo were having a fight in the street and the policeman was summoned to calm them down and Carly attacked him.”

The material described that it was difficult to find someone to say something on Reisig’s behalf in Pai and that residents were afraid of local police.

Investigation

The Department of Special Investigations was put in charge of the original murder investigation of Leo Del Pinto after local police tried to interfere and to “concoct a story” that the two tourists had attacked the Sergeant and that he had acted only in self defence.

The Thai National Human Rights Commission conducted its own investigation, found evidence conflicted with local police, and uncovered intimidation of witnesses by the head of police in Pai. The commission gave protection to its own witnesses and ordered separate forensic tests.

Forensic findings

Forensic tests conducted by Thailand’s forensic pathologist Dr. Porthip Rojanasund showed that Dechawiwat shot down at Leo as he was falling, while the former officer had said it was he who was falling. Dr. Porthip Rojanasund’s tests were described as showing Leo was lower than the level of the gun and appeared to be falling down when he was shot.

Arrest

At one point described in the material, Dechawiwat was reported to have fled the scene and later admitted to hospital after crashing his car into a tree and subsequently being arrested.

For the murder of Wanta Dechawiwat, a Thai police spokesman confirmed he was being held at the police married quarters in Pai.

Trial and hearings

Plea and special hearing for the Leo Del Pinto case

Dechawiwat pleaded not guilty to the murder of Canadian tourist Leo Del Pinto at the court hearing in March 2012. At the same hearing, Dechachiwat admitted he was the same person convicted in another murder case—the murder of Wanta Dechachiwat, his 18-year-old wife of two weeks, by clubbing her to death with a piece of wood.

The court agreed to a special hearing of the Leo Del Pinto case in Pai in July and three consecutive days in Chiang Mai at the request of the Canadian Embassy.

The material described plans for defence and prosecution witnesses:

• Dechachiwat said he would be calling police two witnesses among five witnesses in his defence.
• Prosecutor Poonbsil Intachai was calling eleven witnesses.
• Carly Reisig had already given evidence at the court in Mae Hong Son.

The material also described that Thai witnesses had police protection following investigation by the Thai National Human Rights Committee.

The material described that among the witnesses would be two expert witnesses:

• Ms. Duangjai Jipipob to report on alcohol levels.
• Police Colonel Boonrak Gowsombat to report on gunpowder residue.

Sentencing

Murder of Wanta Dechachiwat (wife)

Dechawiwat was sentenced to 25 years in prison on January 27, 2011 after pleading guilty to the clubbing death of his 18-year-old wife. It was described as involving murdering his pregnant wife by clubbing her to death with a piece of wood. The material described that the wife was reported to be four months pregnant and that neighbours heard an argument about the time of the incident.

Ernie Del Pinto said he was angry and frustrated that this sentence did not result in a death penalty or life in prison for the wife murder and that he would continue to pursue a sentence for his son’s death.

Murder of Leo Del Pinto (backpacker)

Dechawiwat was sentenced to 37½ years in prison on August 20, 2013 for murder. The material stated that his sentence would run consecutive to the 25-year sentence he received for murdering his wife.

Appeals

No appeal information was provided.

Outcome

Leo Del Pinto was killed. Carly Reisig survived. Dechawiwat received the 25-year prison sentence for Wanta Dechachiwat and later the 37½-year prison sentence for murder.

Dr. Surasee Kosolnavin, the head of the Thai Human Rights Commission, expressed satisfaction with the outcome and said:

“We went in and gave the witnesses protection and made sure the forensics were done right,” Kosolnavin said. “What we found out was not good, but I am pleased for the father that we have been able to help, although there is no way we can compensate for this young man’s death.”

Ernie Del Pinto said:

“This man pleaded guilty at the last minute to avoid the death sentence, just as he did when he murdered his wife,” Ernie Del Pinto, who travelled with his wife Clara and sister Madeline, said. “But I have some satisfaction of knowing that now aged 43 he stands a good chance of dying in jail.”

After the verdict, Ernie Del Pinto also said:

“I would not have been unhappy if he had been given the death penalty. He has stolen my son, and has stolen my son’s hopes and ambitions and future,” Ernie Del Pinto said after the verdict. “I am unhappy with a society that would have allowed the killer to go free had it not been for the intervention of the Thailand Human Rights Commission, and to them I am entirely grateful.”

Before the Leo Del Pinto sentencing, Ernie Del Pinto was quoted:

“I’m pushing even harder for justice now,” said Ernie Del Pinto in Calgary. “This man didn’t just kill his wife, he killed a small child, because she was pregnant.” “They wouldn’t put this man in jail when he killed my son, but now apparently he's in jail because he killed his wife and his child,” Del Pinto told CBC News. “That doesn't make sense to me. If they would have put him in jail the first time, I would assume that these people could have saved these two lives.”

Aftermath

Ernie Del Pinto sat less than two metres from Dechawiwat while he listened to the trial verdict. Ernie and Clara planned to visit the place where Leo was gunned down, and a ceremony was to be conducted there by Buddhist monks.

The material described a campaign called “Justice for Leo” involving billboards and buttons asking for help in making sure the person responsible was put in jail.

The pre-trial process for the Leo Del Pinto death was described as slow, with expectation that it would continue into late spring and hopes that a trial date would be set for late summer or early fall in either the capital of Bangkok or the smaller town of Mae Hong Son.

Ernie Del Pinto said the slow pace of Thai justice system had left his family with pain, frustration, and little closure, and he said:

“My boy was a good man. Whenever I asked him to do anything, he would do it. He was always kind to everyone, never mean. I still miss him so much, his smile, his laughter and his voice.”

Ernie Del Pinto also said he planned to go out for Leo’s trial and wanted to find the location of the shooting and say a prayer to capture Leo’s spirit, saying:

“I'd like to go out for Leo's trial, although it will be hard, and really emotional.” “I know his spirit is there. And I want to go there where he lay dead, and say a prayer, so I can bring his spirit back home, to my country.”

It was also reported that local buses carried poster adverts calling for Thai justice, and that Foreign Affairs in Ottawa had released few details but said it had been in touch with Thai authorities.