The family of a Thai teenager, found in a suitcase, faces her alleged killer in court and seeks the death penalty.

Family members of a 17-year-old Thai girl whose body was discovered in a suitcase near a popular beach resort attended a court hearing on Monday where, for the first time, they were to see the Australian man accused of killing her.

Simon Peter Carman was arrested in June after Tunchanok Donhomla was reported missing in Pattaya, a city about 150 km southeast of Bangkok known for its tourism and sex trade.

The suitcase containing his body was found shortly afterwards near the railway tracks, in a deserted area.

Carman, who turns 46 later this month, was taken to the Pattaya Provincial Court on Monday for a procedural hearing to name witnesses to testify.

Australian defendant could face death penalty

He was charged with murder, two counts of indecency with a minor and concealment of a corpse. A conviction for premeditated murder carries the possibility of the death penalty.

Carman initially denied all accusations, saying he was acting in self-defense and did not know the girl’s real age.

However, when a judge informed him Monday that the evidence against him regarding hiding the victim’s body was strong, but that he could expect leniency if he confessed to the charge, he indicated he would plead guilty.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the hearing, the victim’s aunt Miruntree Thanachai said it would be the first time the family would meet the Australian accused.

“We have already asked the authorities, but they have not allowed us to see him. We want to meet the person who killed our family member,” she said.

Police said the girl was last seen on security footage entering a condominium with Carman. He was then seen leaving the building alone with a large suitcase. Security footage showed him loading it onto a motorcycle and driving away.

The family said Tunchanok had gone on vacation to Pattaya from his home in the rural northeastern province of Kalasin.

Police arrested the suspect as he prepared to return home to Australia.

Carman was arrested at a Bangkok airport before boarding a flight to Australia. Police said subsequent questioning led them to the suitcase containing 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.

“Simon claimed it was self-defense, but it’s not self-defense, because if it’s self-defense, how can my child’s teeth fall out? I want to ask,” the victim’s father, Tongchai Donhomla, told reporters.

He and other family members said they saw the victim’s body and that his face was smashed.

“I want the death penalty, but I can’t do anything. I want the law to punish to the maximum,” he said.

Her sentiment was echoed by Miruntree Thanachai, one of the girl’s aunts. “The family wants the court to sentence him to death because we lost a member of our family, the most important one.

So we want the execution because we don’t want this to happen to others again. No one can bear this kind of damage,” she added.

The grieving family also filed a lawsuit against Carman in civil court on Friday, seeking damages of $49,000.