Thailand confirms life sentence for Daniel Sancho in murder of Colombian Edwin Arrieta
Samui Provincial Court upheld the sentence against Spanish national Daniel Sancho for the premeditated murder of Colombian surgeon Edwin Arrieta.
Thai court upholds life sentence for Daniel Sancho
Thailand's courts confirmed on Friday the life sentence against Spanish national Daniel Sancho for the premeditated murder of Colombian surgeon Edwin Arrieta, according to reports from elirreverenteibague.com.
Samui Provincial Court dismissed appeals filed by both Sancho's defence team and the Arrieta family, maintaining the first-instance decision. Sancho, held in Surat Thani prison, followed the reading of the verdict via videoconference.
The events date to 2 August 2023, when Arrieta, aged 44, was murdered on the island of Phangan in southern Thailand. Sancho was detained days later and admitted to authorities that he had caused the doctor's death and concealed his body. The prosecution maintained throughout the trial that the crime was premeditated; the defence argued that the death occurred during a fight and that Sancho acted in self-defence.
The defence had requested a retrial or a new hearing with additional witnesses. The Colombian doctor's family, for their part, appealed for the sentence to be increased to the death penalty.
The first-instance sentence, handed down in 2024, found Sancho guilty of the premeditated murder of Arrieta, as well as offences relating to the concealment and dismemberment of the body and the destruction of the victim's passport.
Following announcement of the decision, the Arrieta family released a statement in which they thanked those who had provided support during the proceedings and requested respect and reflection in memory of Edwin. The family's lawyers furthermore noted that, following confirmation of the sentence, "it is now time to request sincere forgiveness" for the harm caused to Edwin's parents and sister.
Source: Google News CO — Crime