Bangkok bombing: Thai court sentences two over 2015 attack

Two men has been given death penality by Thailand court for 2015 Bangkok attack at shrine that killed 20 people.

The Bangkok South Criminal Court on thursday issued its long-delayed ruling for the deadliest bombing in the country’s history.

The court convicted two ethnic Uighur men of premeditated and attempted murder for their role in planting a bomb at the Erawan shrine in Bangkok’s commercial heart on August 17, 2015.

The defendants Chinese nationals Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed were charged with a variety of offences, including murder, attempted murder and illegal possession of explosive materials. They allegedly were linked by video, fingerprints and other evidence to the bombing.

After the verdict, Choochat Kanpai, a lawyer for one of the men, told reporters they will appeal the sentence within a month as Both have repeatedly denied the charges against them.

After being sentenced on Thursday, Mieraili said, “RIP Thailand’s justice system. I don’t accept any of this. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

The August 2015 attack at the popular Erawan shrine in Bangkok’s commercial heart killed 20 people and wounded above 100.

The casualties included several people from mainland China and Hong Kong.

The deadly blast tore apart the site where worshippers and tourists had gathered, injuring more than 120 people and leaving the shrine littered with motorbike fragments and singed debris.

Notably, the case has taken more than 10 years to reach trial, with prosecutors collecting evidence from hundreds of witnesses.

After the verdict, China said it supports Thailand for this decision.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a news briefing, “The attackers were totally inhumane and extremely heinous. China supports Thailand in conducting the trial in accordance with the law and severely punishing the murderers.”

The decade long case involved at least 10,000 pages of testimony and almost 400 witnesses.