EIGHT YEARS ON: A CASE FAST TRACKED BY THE PRIME MINISTER OF THAILAND

The wife of a British fugitive from justice has had her 33 year 6 month jail sentence – for conspiracy to murder one of her husband’s clients in a property development in Thailand -confirmed by the Thai Appeal Court.

Janpen Oxley, the wife of fugitive Darren Oxley, has also been ordered by the Provincial Court in Prachuap Khiri Kan Province of Thailand to pay 18 million baht – just over US$500,000 – damages to the wife, now widow, of former US Marine Donald Whiting, who was gunned down while in dispute with her husband.

She is reported to be appealing against both damages awards and criminal conviction to higher courts.

Janpen’s husband Darren Oxley fled a drugs trial at Sheffield Crown Court in 2001 where he was accused of being the ring-leader of a drugs gang operating in clubs in Sheffield city centre.
A warrant for his arrest was issued and Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service told the Sheffield Star that extradition proceedings had been unsuccessful*. They were not however unsuccessful in Thailand where there is no record of extradition proceedings having been started.

South Yorkshire police declined to comment and when questions were submitted under the Freedom of Information Act police also declined to answer on the basis that it was an ‘ongoing operational matter’.

Oxley was successfully allowed to bring in a large amount of cash to Thailand, specifically the resort town of Hua Hin, where he built a large home ‘Oxley Mansion’ and set up the property development company ‘Oxley Homes’.

Oxley Mansion

Donald Whiting and his wife Dolly Samson had had major problems with Hua Hin’s notorious foreign property developers and had paid cash over to Greek developer Georgiou Mastronikolis, the foreigner behind the Hua Hin Today newspaper for a house he never built, before opting for an ‘Oxley Home’.

But they became seriously embroiled in a serious dispute with Oxley over water and electricity charges which he had allegedly hiked. The row went viral locally on the net and was damaging Oxley’s business.

Donald Whiting was scheduled to sue Oxley’s company in the Prachuap Khiri Kan provincial court – but in October 2008 three days before the hearing he was ambushed outside his house.
Donald Whiting took six bullets and was paralysed for life. He died earlier this year.

At the time Thailand’s Prime Minister Abhisit Vejajjiva demanded a speedy resolution to the case.

Before he died he said: “I had never spoken to Janpen Oxley ever. My row was with Oxley and I had complained on the internet about his shoddy services. Why are people like Darren Oxley allowed to wander freely.”

Both Darren Oxley and Georgiou ‘George’ Mastronikolis heavily courted local officials and police in Hua Hin, hosting dinners, and in Oxley’s case parties in his Huh Hin Mansion.

In 2014 the Supreme Court confirmed a 7 million baht damages award to Dolly Samson and Donald “Biff’ Whiting but Mastronikolis has yet to pay a penny.

The Greek national has however a number of creditors and bankruptcy proceedings are reported to be in process. If a court rules bankruptcy his status in Thailand would be revoked and he can be held in custody.

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FOOTNOTE* In all drugs cases involving Britons sought in Thailand that I have reported no extraditions proceedings have been required. The Thai authorities have merely deported the alleged offenders. These include Walter ‘Whacky’ Douglas who was deported at the request of UK Police on passport charges.