Australian man accused of teenage girl’s murder pleads not guilty

BANGKOK (AP) — An Australian man pleaded not guilty in court Friday to charges of murder and concealment of a body in connection with the death of a teenage girl in an eastern Thai tourist city, officials said.

Simon Peter Carman was arrested in June after the 17-year-old girl was reported missing in Pattaya City, about 150 kilometers (93 miles) southeast of Bangkok, and a suitcase containing her body was found soon afterward.

Prosecutors indicted Carman on Thursday, according to Pattaya City Police. He was also charged with two counts of committing indecent acts on a minor.

The Pattaya Provincial Court said in a press release that Carman consulted with his attorney and denied all charges, saying that he was acting in self-defense and that he did not know the girl’s real age. It said his request to be released on bail was denied due to flight risk.

The court scheduled an Oct. 12 hearing to examine the evidence.

Carman is being detained at Pattaya Remand Prison.

A conviction on the charge of premeditated murder carries the possibility of a death penalty.

Police said the girl was last seen on security footage walking into a condominium with Carman. He was later seen leaving the building alone with a large suitcase. Security footage showed him loading it onto a motorbike and riding into a deserted area along the railway.

Carman was arrested at a Bangkok airport before boarding a flight to Australia. Police said subsequent questioning led them to the suitcase with the girl’s body.

In a police interrogation video shared online by Thai media, Carman said he was defending himself because the girl was threatening him with a knife.