KOH SAMUI, Thailand – Thailand’s Court of Appeal Region 8 has upheld the life sentence handed to Spanish chef Daniel Sancho Bronchalo for the premeditated murder of Colombian plastic surgeon Edwin Arrieta Arteaga on Koh Phangan in 2023. The ruling was read at Koh Samui Provincial Court on September 25, rejecting appeals from both Sancho and the victim’s family. Sancho’s defence had argued that Arrieta’s death resulted from an accidental fall during a physical confrontation, while the victim’s family had sought the death penalty.
The appellate court found that the evidence supported the finding of premeditated murder. According to the ruling, Sancho had prepared knives, a saw, garbage bags, gloves and cleaning equipment before taking Arrieta to the hotel where the killing occurred. The court also considered his actions after the death, including dismembering the body and disposing of the remains, in reaching its conclusion.
The court rejected the defence argument that the death was accidental, noting that Sancho did not seek medical assistance after Arrieta was seriously injured. Instead, the court found that he remained in the room before dismembering the body. The original Koh Samui Provincial Court sentenced Sancho to death in August 2024, but reduced the sentence to life imprisonment after taking his confession into account. It also ordered him to pay 4.424 million baht in compensation to Arrieta’s parents.
The appeal court upheld the first-instance judgment, including the convictions relating to concealment and dismemberment of the body and destruction of Arrieta’s passport. The victim’s family’s request for a higher penalty and Sancho’s appeal against the conviction were both rejected.
Sancho, the son of Spanish actor Rodolfo Sancho, followed the reading of the appeal ruling by videoconference from Surat Thani Prison, where he is serving his sentence.
