December 27, 2012
BANGKOK (AFP) - A British kickboxer who was extradited to Thailand could face the death penalty after being charged with the murder of an American on the resort island of Phuket, a court official said Thursday.
Prosecutors allege Lee Aldhouse stabbed to death a 23-year-old Marine, Dashawn Longfellow, following a bar fight in 2010.
Aldhouse, known in Phuket by his ring name 'The Pitbull', fled to the UK after the incident and was extradited this month under a 100-year-old treaty, becoming the first British suspect to be returned to Thailand.
"He was indicted on a charge of killing (the man) yesterday," said a court official on the popular tourist island.
Aldhouse has been remanded in custody and will return to court to enter a plea on February 18 next year, she said.
He could face the death penalty if convicted, although it is rarely carried out, or up to a life sentence in prison.
Both men are believed to have trained in the Muay Thai form of kickboxing, with local reports saying Aldhouse competed in Phuket. He was 28 at the time of the alleged murder.
Longfellow was in Phuket after sustaining a combat injury in Afghanistan. US media reports said he had been awarded a the Purple Heart decoration for his injury.
