The imminent reading of the sentence against Daniel Sancho for the alleged premeditated murder of the Colombian surgeon Edwin Arrieta, the possible sentences and appeals and compensation the victim’s family are some of the key issues pending in the case against the Spaniard in Thailand.
The sentence against Daniel Sancho, 30, will be announced on Thursday, just over a year after the alleged crime was committed on the Thai tourist island of Phangan on August 2, 2023.
These are some of the key points at the end of the trial against the accused.
Reading of the sentence
The same judge who has been handling the case from the beginning, and whose identity has not been revealed, will read the sentence at a hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. (03:00 GMT) on August 29 which could last up to three hours, according to sources close to the case told EFE.
Both the defense and the prosecution will receive a copy of the sentence at a hearing in which, in principle, only the judge will speak, they told EFE from the Samui Provincial Court, where it will take place. Access to it will be restricted and decided at the last minute by the judge, and in principle the defense attorney, the prosecutor, Sancho himself and his parents, the Spanish actor Rodolfo Sancho and the investment analyst Silvia Bronchalo, as well as staff from the Spanish embassy will attend.
Maximum penalty
During the trial, held behind closed doors in the same court from April 9 to May 2, the prosecution maintained that Sancho planned the murder, while the defense argued that the death of the 44-year-old surgeon was due to an accident during a fight in which the accused defended himself from an alleged attempted sexual assault.
The Thai penal code provides for prison sentences of between 15 and 20 years, life imprisonment and the death penalty for murder. Section 289 specifically provides for the death penalty for premeditated murder, although the country tends to reduce the punishment and rarely applies it.
Read also: Daniel Sancho spoke before his sentencing: “I am prepared for the best and the worst”
Other crimes
Involuntary manslaughter is punishable by between 3 and 15 years in prison.
Of the three charges against Sancho – premeditated murder, concealment of the corpse and destruction of foreign documents – the Spaniard has only accepted the second, for the dismemberment of Arrieta, punishable by up to one year in prison, while Thai law provides for up to six years in prison for the third.
Appeals
During the reading of the sentence, a period of one month will be set for the parties decide on the appeals that could be extended depending on the judge, they told EFE from the court.
The appeals are submitted in writing to the Samui court without witnesses or appearances, so Sancho will no longer have to appear in person, with the option of up to two appeals (a first to the Court of Appeals and another to the Supreme Court), a process that usually takes about a year.
2024-08-27 16:52:59
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