Briton who dismembered Thai woman and stuffed her in suitcase jailed for eight years

A North Staffordshire businessman has been jailed for eight years after murdering a Thai dancer before stuffing her naked body in a suitcase and throwing it in a river.

Shane Looker killed dancer Laxami Manochat in November, 2014.

But the 52-year-old laid low in his holiday home for weeks, before crossing the border to Malaysia, and fleeing to Spain until his arrest in 2017.

He was finally extradited back to Thailand last July following a hearing before the European Court of Human Rights.

It followed assurances that Looker would not face the death penalty or be mistreated in Thailand.

Now Looker - who grew up in Windermere Road, Clayton - has been convicted of the murder and also ordered to pay Laxami's mother and daughter a total of £291,300 in compensation.

The 31-year-old's body - and a dead dog - was found in a suitcase in the river

The defendant had only been in Bangkok for two nights when he picked up 31-year-old Laxami in the Hot Lips go-go bar.

Police launched a murder investigation when her body was found dismembered - 95 miles away - in the suitcase in the river.

Her black stilettos, black dress and a pink thong were also in the luggage as well as a dead dog. The suitcase had been weighted down with rocks.

But Looker had already fled the country before being identified as the main suspect and an international manhunt was launched after he was identified in CCTV footage walking hand-in-hand with Laxami before her death.

They had left the Rainbow 4 go-go bar in the Nana Plaza region of the Thai capital on November 1, 2014.

Killer laid low for weeks after murder, before crossing the border to Malaysia, and fleeing to Spain until his arrest in 2017

Looker had always denied the murder charge. Speaking in 2015, he said: “Yes, I did know her. I'm happy to accept that I spent time with her.

"She is a bar girl that I knew previously and I accept that I paid the bar fine.

"There is no way in the world that I'd ever hurt any woman let alone kill her.

"This is a despicable crime which I vehemently deny. I look forward to proving my innocence in the fullness of time."

When asked about the case, a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesman said: "We continue to support a British man who is imprisoned in Thailand."