ABC News (AU)
· collected 2026-10-12 · by Karishma Vyas and Supattra Vimonsuknopparat
Simon Peter Carman appeared in a Thai court facing charges of murdering 17-year-old Tunchanok Donhomla, known as Cake, whose body was found in Pattaya. The girl's family filed a civil lawsuit seeking $70,500 from Carman for funeral expenses and future financial support lost due to her death. While maintaining his innocence, Carman faces potential life imprisonment or the death penalty if convicted of intentional murder and other charges related to concealing and moving the corpse.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-12,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Tunchanok Donhomla, also known as Cake, was found dead on June 27 near railway tracks outside Pattaya, Thailand, inside a black suitcase. Two days earlier, she had been seen with Simon Peter Carman, an Australian truck driver from Perth, in the foyer of his condo complex. Carman faces charges including intentional murder and could be sentenced to life imprisonment or death if convicted.
Carman is being sued by Donhomla's family for over $51,000 (approximately 2 million Thai baht) in compensation. During a translated interview with ABC, Tunchanok’s cousin Khanitta Nongkhampoon emphasized that the lawsuit aims to hold Carman accountable rather than seeking financial gain.
Carman has maintained his innocence, claiming Donhomla attacked him with a knife before he hid her body in a suitcase due to distrust of Thai authorities. The civil and criminal cases against Carman are expected to be heard simultaneously, with the former proceeding while he awaits trial on the latter charges.
Written for “Thai Teen Murder Lawsuit” on 2026-10-12,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
In short:
Simon Peter Carman has appeared in a Thai court court over the alleged murder of Tunchanok Donhomla.
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Carman → appear → Donhomla
Ms Tunchanok's family is seeking damages in a civil case against the 45-year-old Australian, who has maintained his innocence.
asserted
who → seek → innocence
The civil and criminal cases against Mr Carman are expected to be heard simultaneously.
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cases → expect → Carman
The family ofThai teenager Tunchanok Donhomla is seeking $70,500 in compensation from her alleged murderer, Australian Simon Carman, a court has heard.
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court → seek → murderer
Mr Carman has maintained his innocence, telling the court the 17-year-old girl was "responsible for her own death".
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girl → maintain → death
Police and rescue volunteers discovered the naked body of Ms Tunchanok, who was known as Cake, inside a discarded suitcase in the popular seaside city of Pattaya in June.
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who → discover → June
Prosecutors charged Mr Carman with intentional murder, concealing a corpse, moving or destroying a corpse, and abducting a minor for indecent purposes.
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Prosecutors → charge → purposes
If found guilty, he faces life imprisonment or the death penalty in Thailand.
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he → find → Thailand
Family files civil suit
On Sunday, Ms Tunchanok's cousin Khanitta Nongkhampoon told the ABC that the family had filed a civil lawsuit against Mr Carman.
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family → file → Carman
They are seeking 1.65 million baht ($A70,500) in compensation for the 17-year-old's death.
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They → seek → death
In Thailand, victims of crime and their family members are permitted to lodge civil cases seeking monetary compensation from alleged perpetrators in addition to any criminal prosecution.
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victims → permit → prosecution
Ms Khanitta said the money would help Ms Tunchanok's father pay for funeral expenses, as well as compensate him for the financial support his daughter would have provided in the future.
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daughter → say → future
"Nobody wants money from this.
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Nobody → want → this
They want the person's life back.
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They → want → life
She should have had a future that went much further than this," Ms Khanitta said.
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Khanitta → have → this
Almost four months after Ms Tunchanok's death, Mr Thongchai said his grief remained overwhelming.
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grief → say → death
"Normally, she would be at home when I get back from work.
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I → get → work
I would see her every day.
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I → see → her
Now when I go back, there's nothing left but emptiness," he said through tears.
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he → go → tears
"I want the case to be pursued to the fullest extent.
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case → want → extent
Deep down, I wish for the death penalty, but I think it probably won't go that far.
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it → wish → penalty
I'll leave it to the law to take action to the maximum extent, because I have lost my only child."
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I → leave → child
The Office of Rights Protection and Legal Aid has assisted Ms Tunchanok's family to apply for a government lawyer to help them pursue the civil lawsuit and to also assist with the ongoing criminal case.
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them → assist → case
Court will give case 'higher priority'
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Court → give → priority
An official from the Office of Rights Protection and Legal Aid said the civil case would not affect the outcome of the criminal case against Mr Carman.
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case → say → Carman
Ms Tunchanok's family would only be awarded compensation if the Australian was convicted of the charges against him, they added.
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they → award → him
"If they file a civil lawsuit separately, they will have to pay court fees," the official said.
"
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official → file → fees
But since this is a civil case related to a criminal case involving a murder that has caused damage to life, they can bring the civil claim as part of the criminal proceedings without having to pay court fees."
The legal aid office confirmed that the civil and criminal cases against Mr Carman would be heard simultaneously.
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cases → relate → Carman
The court will issue its rulings on both at the same time, according to the office.
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court → issue → office
"Because this is a high-profile case that has occurred recently and involves a tourist, the court will give it higher priority and try to expedite the proceedings," an official from the office who did not want to be identified said.
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who → occur → office
The office said the case was "unlikely to take beyond the first half of next year".
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case → say → year
"We need to present as much evidence as possible to help the court understand the family's circumstances and consider their claim sympathetically," the legal aid office said.
"
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office → need → claim
However, an important factor is also how much Simon [Carman] can afford to pay."
Carman in custody since June
Mr Carman was represented in court by lawyer Sorasit Pongin, who told the ABC he had been retained by the defendant's mother.
The West Australian man has been held at the Pattaya Remand Prison since his arrest in June.
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man → afford → June
He denied all charges when he appeared in court today.
"There was no intention at all [to kill Ms Tunchanok].
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he → deny → Tunchanok
I didn't know what to do," he said to a member of his defence team.
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he → know → team
When Mr Carman was asked by the judges if he would agree to pay compensation to Ms Tunchanok's family, he responded: "I'm not guilty so I cannot plead guilty.
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I → ask → family
"I am innocent and they cannot lock up an innocent man," he said.
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he → lock → man
"Why [do] I have to pay compensation when I haven't done anything wrong?
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I → have → anything
I do feel bad for the family."
Ms Tunchanok was last seen
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Tunchanok → feel → family
on June 25, when she was recorded on CCTV walking hand in hand with Mr Carman into the elevators of his condo building about 3:30am
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she → record → building
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
