“It is clear that it was an accident,” insisted Daniel Sancho after the trial for Arrieta’s death

Spaniard Daniel Sancho says he is “prepared for the best and the worst” ahead of the sentence that will determine on August 29 whether or not he is guilty of the premeditated murder of Colombian surgeon Edwin Arrieta on an island in Thailand last year.

“I am prepared for the best and the worst“Sancho told EFE on August 22 in Samui prison (southern Thailand) when asked how he was facing the verdict, although he was optimistic and convinced that the judge would rule out the possibility that Arrieta’s death was due to premeditated murder.

The Spaniard considered that during the trial “it became clear that it was an accident,” in reference to Arrieta’s death on August 2, 2023 on the Thai island of Phangan, citing forensic evidence presented by the defense that he said showed the death was caused by a fight.

Sancho, 30, made these statements during a visit to the prison and the The conversation took place through glass and a telephone with no recording or notes allowed.

After more than a year in preventive detention, the young man He admitted that he is impatiently waiting to hear the sentence and that the months since the trial took placewhich concluded last May, has seemed “very long.”

“Until the trial, I was a man on a mission,” he said, adding that he spent a lot of time focused and preparing for the trial, in which he played a very active role, as the judge allowed him to ask questions of witnesses.

During the trial, held behind closed doors at Samui Provincial Court between April 9 and May 2, the The defendant and his defense team maintained that Arrieta’s death was due to an accident during a fight and that the Spaniard acted in self-defense. in the face of an alleged attempted sexual assault.

The prosecution, for its part, tried to prove through dozens of pieces of evidence and witnesses, including the purchase of knives and a saw, that Sancho planned the murder and dismemberment of Arrieta in the days prior.44, whose remains were found in several locations in Phangan, including the sea.

The autopsy performed on the Colombian surgeon was inconclusive as key body parts such as the torso were not found.

The Spaniard, who has been maintaining his usual routine of exercise and reading in the last few days before hearing the sentence, had met up with the Colombian surgeon, whom he had known since 2022, on the same day of the events.

The defendant, who initially confessed to the crime to Phangan police, will attend the sentencing hearing on Thursday at the Samui court, where the trial was held amid huge media attention.

According to sources close to the case, The judgment has already been drafted and has been sent for ratification to the office of the senior judge in Surat Thani. (province to which Samui belongs).

Sancho said that this procedure, which is common in Thailand for serious cases, both criminal and civil, that may involve high penalties or compensation, gives him “peace of mind” and “confidence” in the process.

The Thai Penal Code It provides for a prison sentence ranging from 15 years to the death penalty in cases of murder, although Thailand rarely applies the latter punishment. and is usually switched to lower ones.

Involuntary manslaughter cases are punishable by between 3 and 15 years in prison.

The Spaniard is also accused of dismembering Arrieta’s body – to which he has pleaded guilty – and of making his passport disappear.crimes that could carry between one and six years in prison, respectively.

Access to the courtroom during the reading of the sentence on Thursday will be very restricted and the judge will not decide until the last moment who can enter, according to EFE.

However, the accused’s father and mother, Spanish actor Rodolfo Sancho and investment analyst Silvia Bronchalo, are expected to be present in court, as well as the prosecutor, Thai defense attorneys and those representing the victim’s family in Thailand.

Arrieta’s family will not attend the reading of the sentence and have not yet made any statements about how they will deal with the ruling.