A Thai court on Tuesday sentenced to death a railway employee on the charges of murder and aggravated rape of a minor girl on a train in July, a case that created furore in the country. The Hua Hin provincial court found Wanchai Sangkhao (22) the first defendant in the case, guilty on several counts. He was sentenced to death for murder, nine years in jail for raping a girl under 15, five years for stealing while on public transport vehicles at night, one year for hiding a body and six months for drug abuse. Wanchai, a sleeper-car employee of the Railway of Thailand, confessed to raping a 13-year-old girl on July 5 while she was asleep in the Nakhon Si Thammarat-Bangkok express train heading to the Thai capital. He subsequently threw her out the window while she was still breathing. She was killed by the fall. Searchers later found her body beside the rail track. The court rejected Wanchai's claim for mercy because he had confessed in an act of repentance. The court said Wanchai confessed because he had no choice as the evidence against him was so strong. There were no grounds for commutation of sentence. Nattakorn Chamnarn (19) the second defendant who was charged with helping another person rape a girl under 15, confessed during the investigation, but denied the charge in court. Nattakorn was sentenced to six years in prison as an accessory. Since, he confessed during the investigation stage, the penalty was commuted by a third to four years.
