British father, 51, ‘who kicked his 21-year-old Thai wife to death when she refused to have sex with him’ dies from ‘mystery injuries’ in notorious prison in Thailand before his trial
- Kevin Smitham died at the base of Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani Central Prison
- The 51-year-old from Nottingham had been staying with wife Kanda Smitham
- But he is said to have launched into a jealous rage after she refused to have sex
- Police said he kicked her to death and covered her with a blanket last April
- Foreign Office revealed Smitham died in August while awaiting murder trial
A husband accused of strangling and kicking his wife to death when she refused him sex has died after suffering mysterious injuries in prison in Thailand.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has confirmed British man Kevin Smitham’s body was found at the base of Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani Central Prison.
Smitham, 51, from Nottingham, was awaiting trial for the brutal murder of his Thai wife Kandra Smitham, 29, on April 15 last year.
Kevin Smitham, 51, had been staying with wife Kanda Smitham, 29, and their parents in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand, during the songkran new year holiday
Police arrived and found fitness fanatic Kanda’s body – in only underwear – on the ground in front of the family’s single-storey home this morning at 6.30am
The couple, who had two young children together, had been staying with Mrs Smitham’s parents in Ubon Ratchathani, in the northeast of the country, for the Songkran New Year festival.
Her body was found under a blanket early on April 16 by shocked neighbours.
Police claimed at the time Mr Smitham attacked her, covered her body and then went to bed.
The couple had lived together in Pattaya and have two children. Like many people during the Songkran holiday, they were visiting her relatives in the northeastern Isan region. But Kevin Smitham was found at the base of Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani Central Prison in August, the Foreign Office confirmed this week
He was arrested and held in custody, but was discovered with fatal injuries close to an outbuilding on the perimeter of the prison in August last year.
He died later in hospital but it is not known how he received the injuries.
His death has only been publicly confirmed by the FCO this week.
An FCO spokesperson said: ‘Our staff are providing support and advice to the family of a British man who died in Thailand in August 2018, and they remain in touch with the local authorities.’
The couple had lived together in the popular beach resort of Pattaya on the east coast, where Mrs Smitham was a well-known fitness enthusiast who ran a Facebook page with over 28,000 followers.
Inspector General Watcharapol Pimwong, Deputy Chief of Staff in the Det Udom district, said at the time: ‘I arrived and found a woman lying naked in front of the house and called officials from the rescue foundation.
‘The woman was Kandra Smitham, age 29.
‘The victim had a blanket covering her. There were many bruises on the face and body. She had been dead for several hours.
‘The victim’s husband confessed to killing his wife. He said that he did not mean to kill her.
‘Last night he and his wife had beer until late at night. He went to sleep in the house. During the drinking and eating, suddenly they started arguing because he wanted to have sex.
‘His wife refused and this caused jealousy. He thought that the wife had been courting other men.
‘He said he attack her with his foot, kicked her to face and body several times.
‘The wife ran away from home and fell in front of the house. He left his wife like that by covering the blanket to cover it. Then went to bed.’