Thailand: Spanish actor’s son jailed for murdering surgeon

Sancho was found guilty of premeditated murder, concealing a corpse, and destruction of property.

A court on nearby island Koh Samui, where the case was heard, initially issued a death sentence for murder, but this was commuted to life imprisonment after taking into account his cooperation during the trial.

Sancho, a chef who has his own YouTube channel, external, was also ordered to pay 4 million baht ($118,000; £89,000) in damages to Arrieta’s family.

Bussakorn Kaewleeled, a lawyer for the victim’s family, said they were satisfied with the outcome.

“The plaintiff is satisfied with the sentence because he (Sancho) will be put in prison for life and they (the plaintiff) receive some financial compensation,” Bussakorn told reporters outside the court on the island of Koh Samui, AFP news agency reported.

Police discovered parts of Arrieta’s body at a landfill in Koh Phangan in early August last year.

Around the same time, Sancho went to the police to report that Arrieta, then 44, was missing.

Sancho admitted to killing Arrieta upon further questioning.

Thai media reported last year that investigations had shown that Sancho had bought, among other things, a knife, rubber gloves and a bottle of cleaning agent – leading police to conclude the murder was premeditated.

Sancho later led police to seven sites around the island, where he disposed of Arrieta’s dismembered body in plastic bags.

Reports said that Sancho and Arrieta had agreed to meet after getting to know each other online.

The defence argued that Sancho acted in self-defence after Arrieta tried to force him to have sex. Sancho said the plastic surgeon “tried to rape [him]”, in a statement published by Spanish newspaper El Mundo.

Sancho hails from a family of actors. His mother is the actress Silvia Bronchalo, while his grandfather is the late actor Félix Ángel Sancho Gracia.

Additional reporting by Ryn Jirenuwat in Bangkok