Husband of ‘Lady of the Hills’ Lamduan denies killing her

[webfact]

Husband of ‘Lady of the Hills’ Lamduan denies killing her

By THE NATION

 

Lamduan

 

THE PARENTS of a Thai woman found dead in England’s Yorkshire Dales in 2004 and, until identified lately, dubbed “the Lady of the Hills” have asked for the return of her remains.
 

When Richard Hill posed for this picture, he did not realise Lamduan Armitage's body was wrapped around the rocks behind him. // Photo: Richard Hill

 

For 15 years, Lamduan Armitage, nee Seekanya, lay buried as an unidentified woman in northern England, thousands of kilometres from her homeland.

 

An investigation into her death, long shelved as a cold case, has now resumed, with Lamduan’s British husband firmly denying any wrongdoing. 

 

“We want her skeleton back for a ritual based on northeastern beliefs and traditions,” Lamduan’s mother Joomsri Seekanya said yesterday at her home in Udon Thani. 

 

Joomsri, 72, and her husband Buasa, 75, had not heard from Lamduan since 2004.

 

“The last time she called us, she said her husband assaulted her and she wanted to come home,” Joomsri said. “So what do you expect us to think about it?” 

 

 

Lamduan’s widower, David Armitage has reportedly been living in Thailand for years, working as a schoolteacher. Yesterday he denied killing her. 

 

The London-based Sun tabloid quoted Armitage, 55, as saying, “I didn’t kill my wife. Absolutely not!”

 

Recent DNA tests have confirmed that the body of an Asian woman discovered near Pen-y-ghent in the vast, rural dales was that of Lamduan.

 

Police did not at first suspect foul play, but evidence mounted hinting at the possibility of murder. A British coroner rendered an “open verdict”, meaning there was no proof as to the cause of death.

 

Lamduan’s parents, worried when she no longer called them, sold off their cattle and land to finance a search. They told reporters that during her last visit home, Lamduan husband had urged them to sell their land in response her husband’s urging. 

 

“We spent Bt330,000 and found nothing,” Joomsri said earlier this year. 

 

She said yesterday her grandson – one of three children Lamduan had with Armitage – once visited on his own, looking for his mother. He’d heard that she’d left England to marry another man. “But I never heard she’d remarried,” Joomsri said. 

 

The parents were in the news after a former neighbour who married a Briton and moved to England returned home with a police sketch of “the Lady of the Hills”. 

 

Cold case investigators released an artist's impression of the woman found near Pen-y-ghen. // NORTH YORKSHIRE POLICE

 

“She saw the sketch online and thought it looked like Lamduan in some ways,” Joomsri said. The neighbour helped Joomsri contact a network of Thai women living in Britain. The network in turn arranged for the DNA tests that identified the mystery woman as Lamduan. 

 

Lamduan’s parents are currently focused on arranging their daughter’s funeral. “Let the police handle the legal proceedings against the murderer,” Joomsri said.

 

Justice Ministry deputy permanent secretary Tawatchai Thaikyo said such matters could be brought before a Thai court even when the suspect is a foreigner and the crime is committed overseas.

 

“The court can render verdicts in such cases and also order compensation be paid to victims,” he said.

 

For the past 15 years Lamduan has lain buried in a churchyard in Horton-in-Ribblesdale, a town close to where she was found, the service paid for by the local parish. 

 

The gravestone bears a plaque that reads, “The Lady of the Hills. Found September 20, 2004. Name Not Known. Rest in Peace.”

 

Photo: BBC

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-03-21

[balo]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

“The last time she called us, she said her husband assaulted her and she wanted to come home,” Joomsri said. “So what do you expect us to think about it?” 

 

Ok so now we also have a witness who talked to the woman on the phone before she was killed.  This just strengthen the evidence against the husband.

 

The police really need to interrogate him about his movements in 2004.   

[hansnl]

3 hours ago, balo said:

 

Ok so now we also have a witness who talked to the woman on the phone before she was killed.  This just strengthen the evidence against the husband.

 

The police really need to interrogate him about his movements in 2004.   

OK, you are a star detective!

The number of times I heard Thai women tell they were beaten by their husbands for, eventually, revenge and financial gain, are many.

[Khun Paul]

We have British Forensics stating she was not physically assaulted therefore possibly poisoned or drugged. Died of Hypothermia and an open verdict. No doubt the Police did conduct an investigation at the time and as the identity was unknown , Mr Armitage may or may not have been involved. If as he states she left to go back to Thailand, then his belief was just that .

Now we have THAI authorities stating we can try the case and demand compensation, I do love their Micky Mouse utterances and suggest they look at the law. No offence committed here, the only link is that she is Thai , that is all.

 

Unlike here the British Police are thorough, HM Coroners are not stupid either , no other evidence available , so they have nothing to go on, only hearsay and  

stories. But as this is Thailand I would suggest Mr Armitage leave before he then gets arrested and held for an  indeterminate time while the Thai Authorities ( RTP ) conjure up a loaded case against him. As for compensation, sounds good but do not hold your breath. 

[Briggsy]

5 minutes ago, Khun Paul said:

No doubt the Police did conduct an investigation at the time and the husband was probably questioned but not suspected

How do you come up with this?????

[sanemax]

3 minutes ago, Khun Paul said:

We have British Forensics stating she was not physically assaulted therefore possibly poisoned or drugged. Died of Hypothermia and an open verdict. No doubt the Police did conduct an investigation at the time and the husband was probably questioned but not suspected.  

Considering that they've only recently found out who she is and its only this week that they found out who her husband is , it would have been impossible for the Police to have spoken to him at the time .

[dunrudin]

If the issue is a case of respectfully dealing with the remains in a culturally appropriate (i.e.Thai) manner, by all means allow the body to be exhumed, prepared and transported to Thailand at the parents' expense. I might have thought said remains have already been respectfully dealt with. Merit can surely be made appropriately in a less intrusive manner in situ.

[GoodieAfterDark]

This is a huge misunderstanding. This bubala is a very, very good man, good man as teacher, good man as a murder?

[ronaldo0]

He's hardly likely to say oh yes it was me I done it is he !

He could have driven her out into middle of nowhere at night and kicked her out of the vehicle without adequate clothing etc to survive the cold depending on the time of year .

Pretty odd he left to return to here and didn't seem bothered about his missing wife and nobody questioned where she suddenly went !

 

[NCC1701A]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

Lamduan’s parents, worried when she no longer called them, sold off their cattle and land to finance a search.

 

7 hours ago, webfact said:

“We spent Bt330,000 and found nothing,” Joomsri said earlier this year. 

what a horrible thing to not know where your child is. I am not a parent, but I worry when I put my cat outside.

[pegman]

20 minutes ago, Khun Paul said:

We have British Forensics stating she was not physically assaulted therefore possibly poisoned or drugged. Died of Hypothermia and an open verdict. No doubt the Police did conduct an investigation at the time and as the identity was unknown , Mr Armitage may or may not have been involved. If as he states she left to go back to Thailand, then his belief was just that .

Now we have THAI authorities stating we can try the case and demand compensation, I do love their Micky Mouse utterances and suggest they look at the law. No offence committed here, the only link is that she is Thai , that is all.

 

Unlike here the British Police are thorough, HM Coroners are not stupid either , no other evidence available , so they have nothing to go on, only hearsay and  

stories. But as this is Thailand I would suggest Mr Armitage leave before he then gets arrested and held for an  indeterminate time while the Thai Authorities ( RTP ) conjure up a loaded case against him. As for compensation, sounds good but do not hold your breath. 

What a joke. Those Keystone Brit cops had a dead asian lady and an asian lady disappear 25 miles apart. Yet couldn't connect the dots. Was it 2004 or 1804? No doubt family and/or friends had it figured out. They lived with the husbend's family for bloody sake. A bit of foot work by the Keystones would have flushed that out. 

[Aussieroaming]

He should return to the UK and assist in clearing this up. Justice should be served for both the wife and husband. If he is guilty then better to cop the punishment in the UK. The woman and her family deserves the truth to emerge.

[Rimmer]

An irrelevant post has been removed

[tandor]

4 hours ago, balo said:

 

Ok so now we also have a witness who talked to the woman on the phone before she was killed.  This just strengthen the evidence against the husband.

 

The police really need to interrogate him about his movements in 2004.   

..those rock pools behind him in the photo would be the first place to look..hmm.

[tandor]

55 minutes ago, GoodieAfterDark said:

This is a huge misunderstanding. This bubala is a very, very good man, good man as teacher, good man as a murder?

right.

[tandor]

38 minutes ago, pegman said:

What a joke. Those Keystone Brit cops had a dead asian lady and an asian lady disappear 25 miles apart. Yet couldn't connect the dots. Was it 2004 or 1804? No doubt family and/or friends had it figured out. They lived with the husbend's family for bloody sake. A bit of foot work by the Keystones would have flushed that out. 

..no mention of Hindus.

[hotchilli]

42 minutes ago, NCC1701A said:

 

what a horrible thing to not know where your child is. I am not a parent, but I worry when I put my cat outside.

If it's a Thai "alley cat" so would I !!

[Hanuman2547]

1 hour ago, Khun Paul said:

 

Unlike here the British Police are thorough, HM Coroners are not stupid either , no other evidence available , so they have nothing to go on, only hearsay and  

stories. But as this is Thailand I would suggest Mr Armitage leave before he then gets arrested and held for an  indeterminate time while the Thai Authorities ( RTP ) conjure up a loaded case against him. As for compensation, sounds good but do not hold your breath. 

I strongly advise Mr. Armitage to leave Thailand before he is detained for an indeterminable amount of time before he goes before the Thai judicial system on the evidence of "hear say".

[evadgib]

I can see him being trussed up like a Christmas turkey and served to the cameras before the weekend surrounded by RTP 'synchronized pointing' team.

[Psimbo]

1 hour ago, tandor said:

..those rock pools behind him in the photo would be the first place to look..hmm.

You may want to actually READ the story. ????

 

This is one of the people who FOUND the body.

[khunPer]

3 hours ago, pegman said:

What a joke. Those Keystone Brit cops had a dead asian lady and an asian lady disappear 25 miles apart. Yet couldn't connect the dots. Was it 2004 or 1804? No doubt family and/or friends had it figured out. They lived with the husbend's family for bloody sake. A bit of foot work by the Keystones would have flushed that out. 

The were no Asian lady reported as disappearing – the article states that mr. Armitage's wife Lamduan officially had left him and returned to Asia to marry another man – so how would the so-called "Keystone Brit cops" know about a missing Asian lady just 25 miles away..?????

[maraudingscot]

So, when did the divorce take place?

 

[metisdead]

A troll post has been removed. 

[tandor]

17 hours ago, Psimbo said:

You may want to actually READ the story. ????

 

This is one of the people who FOUND the body.

i did read and yes Mr. Hill is not Mr. Armitage.

[LomSak27]

21 hours ago, Khun Paul said:

We have British Forensics stating she was not physically assaulted therefore possibly poisoned or drugged. Died of Hypothermia and an open verdict. No doubt the Police did conduct an investigation at the time and as the identity was unknown

Her remains, that is REMAINS,  .. out in the wilderness for a long time ....  had been found. And based on this the Boys in Bobby hats could positively state she had not been physically assualted?

 

Right, Sure.

 

Any more porky pies? 

[Briggsy]

4 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

out in the wilderness for a long time

How long exactly?? Best you read again.

 

5 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

Any more porky pies? 

Any more porky pies from you???

[LomSak27]

Just now, Briggsy said:

Just now, LomSak27 said:

Any more porky pies? 

Any more porky pies from you???

Better get the forensics reports ..... At best they could have said no brocken bones - AT best. Any more comedy?

[Briggsy]

1 minute ago, LomSak27 said:

Better get the forensics reports ..... At best they could have said no brocken bones - AT best. Any more comedy?

Backtracking, so you are. I understand, many people, including myself, find it difficult to admit a mistake.

 

The body was discovered between 7 and 21 days after death. The body was in a cold stream in a temperate country. A lot can be determined from a body under those circumstances.

[LomSak27]

It was thought that the body had been in the stream for some time and that the woman could have died up to three weeks prior to the discovery. The cause of death was not initially apparent and no signs of violence were reported.

 

That is, it. However, she most certainly could have been physically assaulted. All they state is no signs of violence s on a three-week corpse could be detected.

Fah. That leaves about everything that did not break bones. I’m sure the Cumbria Bobby squad will ….. Not comment on it  ……………. at this time, hah    You bet they wont! 

[pegman]

20 hours ago, khunPer said:

The were no Asian lady reported as disappearing – the article states that mr. Armitage's wife Lamduan officially had left him and returned to Asia to marry another man – so how would the so-called "Keystone Brit cops" know about a missing Asian lady just 25 miles away..?????

It's official because that's the story he made up to tell family as a cover? Rubbish. The Keystone Brit cops should have solicited information about missing asian women of about her age by using the media. Although from what I've seen of Brit papers, outside the Guardian, they are more interested in reporting the goings on of soap stars than hard news like dead bodies being found. She lived 25 miles from where she was found not a continent away. Total and complete incompetence. Much like we are witnessing with the present Tory gov and this Brexit nonsense.