The family of Daniel Sancho, the young Spanish chef imprisoned in Thailand after confessing that he had murdered and dismembered his friend Edwin Arrieta, a 44-year-old Colombian surgeon, has made public this morning a statement in which he regrets the death of the doctor, asks for respect for the respective families and affirms that they will not make statements about a crime that has caused commotion in Spain, Colombia and Thailand. Fernando Oca, a Spanish lawyer from a Thai law firm, read the statement on behalf of the son of Spanish actor Rodolfo Sancho. "We are very sorry for Edwin's passing and we accompany the family in the feeling," says the lawyer in a video.
Daniel Sancho, 29, who remains in the prison on the island of Samui accused by the Thai police of premeditated murder, has already received the first visit of the lawyer hired by the family, who works in the same office of Oca (Siam Royal International Law and Accounting Associates Co., Ltd), after having been assisted in the first moments by a court-appointed lawyer.
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Thai police ask judge to prosecute Daniel Sancho for premeditated murder
"We appreciate the interest of the press, but we cannot make statements at this time so as not to interfere in the investigation and to respect the painful moment that both families are living in this terrible situation that we have had to live," reads the brief statement, in which it adds: "We are very sorry for the death of Edwin and we accompany his family in the feeling."
Police in Thailand are still gathering evidence against the Spaniard, while still searching the coastal area of the island paradise of Kho Phangan, where Sancho said he had dumped parts of his friend's dismembered body. Investigators have asked the judge to prosecute Sancho for premeditated murder, which in that country usually carries the death penalty. However, the confession and collaboration of the chef suggests that he seeks to get rid of the death penalty, although it does not seem easy to get rid of life imprisonment.
Investigators are looking for the doctor's mobile phone, which has not been located, while trying to clarify what Sancho's motivation was for ending Arrieta's life. In addition, divers are looking for the blue duffel bag in which the confessed murderer allegedly threw part of his body into the sea. The police have practically reconstructed all of Sancho's steps after killing his friend.
Meanwhile, the family of the Colombian doctor opposes that the confessed murderer be punished with the death penalty, arguing religious reasons, his lawyer said Wednesday. "We definitely don't want the death penalty because our family is very religious, very believing in God," Miguel González, legal representative of Edwin Arrieta Arteaga's relatives, told France Presse.
"It's not the way. But we do want an exemplary penalty, it can even be life imprisonment," added González, who rejected an eventual extradition of Sancho to Spain. "The case should be brought in Thailand because the evidence was collected there (...), and because that would give us greater guarantee. It would be an impartial state and there would be no interference from third parties," said the legal representative of the parents and the doctor's sister.