A shot from CCTV footage of the murder suspect The Christchurch man who found the body of his murdered travel buddy in Thailand is expressing relief an arrest has been made, but says the killing could have happened anywhere. Gay West Coast resident and croquet aficionado Charles Jones, 56, was stabbed to death on Monday night in the Thai resort Pattaya, which is about 165km southeast of Bangkok. A 22-year-old Syrian man named as 'Mohamed' has been arrested by police investigating the case. Jones' body was discovered by Menfriend's co-owner Stuart Yeatman, who was also on holiday in Pattaya having a break from his quake-damaged city and business. Yeatman has been the main point of contact for Jones' family, the New Zealand Embassy and New Zealand media since the killing. He says and his friends are coping much better now an arrest has been made, and police have a very strong case so they is confident of a conviction. "Personally I am very relieved an arrest has been made, for his family especially and for my own personal safety given my involvement with the case," he says. "There are still processes to go through so I am taking precautions such as avoiding certain areas and keeping my face pictures out of circulation here," he explains, after stripping back his Facebook account to increase his safety. It's Yeatman's fifth visit to Thailand and while he is obviously shocked at the murder of his friend, he is fully aware it could have happened in any country, but particularly one where there is a great distinction between rich and poor. "In these countries every tourist is considered rich and a target for the undesirable element. In this sense I am not shocked that it happened, it could have happened anywhere," he says. "Charles could have taken steps that would have meant he was still alive today but sadly he didn't. That Charles was 'out' had a direct impact in solving this case so quickly." Yeatman says his friendship with Jones was that of two compatible kiwi personalities who by chance happened to always be in Thailand at similar times. "We never arranged to be here at the same time - but our times tended to overlap due to the New Zealand winter. We did our own thing here but often shared meals out and other experiences together and with other expats - he was a very nice guy, sincere and with no hidden agendas." Jones was the New Zealand President of the World Croquet Federation. He lived in Westport, where he had moved to take care of his ill mother. He earlier lived in Wellington where he was a well-known member of the gay community and volunteered for the Gay Switchboard. His body will be returned to New Zealand next week and his funeral will be held at St Canice's Catholic Church in Westport on Saturday.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Saturday, 27th August 2011 - 6:38pm