Canadian businessman shot dead in Thailand on 34th birthday
BahtSold.com Feb 20, 2009
Told family in Quebec he previously survived attempted poisoning
Francis Alex Degioanni was gunned down Thursday in Phuket, Thailand.
A Canadian property developer died Thursday after being riddled with bullets in his car outside his condominium in Phuket, Thailand.
Francis Alex Degioanni, 34, appeared to have been the victim of a planned hit, freelance reporter Andrew Drummond, speaking from Bangkok, told CBC News.
"He drove out of the condo which he owned on Patong Beach on the island of Phuket and was stopped by two gunmen who shot at his body eight times. Police found wounds to his head, chest, arms. He died before reaching hospital," Drummond said.
Degioanni's family in Quebec said he called home last month to say he had been poisoned and that he blamed a business partner in Thailand.
His girlfriend, Nanthawadee Phenjaroenwatthana, said they were preparing to celebrate his birthday on Thursday when he received a phone call and said he had to go out, the English-language Phuket Gazette reported.
She said that when he got into his car, two men pulled up on a motorbike, opened fire and then fled, the newspaper said on its website.
Police were looking into whether the attack was related to a business dispute or some other motive, such as romantic jealousy, it said.
Selling condos to tourists
Degioanni had been doing business in Phuket for five years, selling condos to foreign tourists, the newspaper said, attributing the information to a police superintendent.
According to police, Degioanni was in conflict with a Thai partner with whom he co-owned a property development business in Phuket, a common arrangement under a law that limits foreign ownership of local companies, Drummond said.
Degioanni had accused the partner of cheating him out of the equivalent of about $750,000 and the matter was before the courts, he said.
Degioanni's father, Mario, lives in Val-des-Monts, Que., in the Gatineau area north of Ottawa.
The father's wife, Charmaine, told the CBC's Amanda Margison that her stepson was engaged in a bitter legal battle with a female business partner, whom he blamed for what he thought was an attempt to poison him.
The family asked him many times in recent years to come home, but he insisted his life was there, she said. He had lived in Thailand for nine years and had a three-year old daughter who remains there, she said.
Other Canadian killings
Two Canadians were shot and killed in Thailand last year.
Calgarian Leo Del Pinto died in Thailand in January 2008 following a confrontation with an off-duty police officer. Del Pinto, 24, died of two gunshot wounds to his face and torso in the northern Thai town of Pai.
In February, a Victoria man died from a gunshot wound to his head at his home in Ranong. Dale Henry, 48, worked for an oil drilling company in Nigeria, but split his time between that country and Thailand.
Henry's wife and two men have been charged in the case.
_____________________________________________________
Phuket Shooter Kills Expat Developer
PhuketWan.com/Shanya Phattrasaya and Apinya Saksri February 20, 2009
Update: Bangkok Police on Phuket for Asean are now investigating the murder
A CANADIAN property investor was shot dead on Thursday evening in Patong, police have told Phuketwan.
He was named as Francis Alex Degioanni, aged 34. He was an island resident, a ''rich'' businessman, and a former Bangkok model, married to a Thai national.
Francis Alex Degioanni poses as a model on jurgita.com
Phuket's Governor, Dr Preecha Ruangjan, on Friday called for police to solve the case as fast as possible.
On Saturday, Phuketwan was told that senior Royal Thai Police from Bangkok had taken charge of the case.
Coincidentally, senior police were on the island for the weekend's important gathering of Asean fiance ministers.
Because the case involves an expat and what appears to be a professional killer, senior police decided to upgrade the investigation and take it out of the hands of local police.
Earlier, Patong's Kathu police superintendent Grissak Songmoonark said he was called to the scene of the shooting about 6.45pm on Thursday.
At 162/11 Soi Ton Village, off Sirirat Road, he found a black Toyota pickup with bullet holes in the driver's seat.
Police told Phuketwan on Saturday that the victim had been hit by eight shots.
When police arrived, Mr Degioanni was in the care of Kusoldham Foundation paramedics. It is believed he died at the scene or on the way to hospital.
Police found a gun in the pickup. Mr Degioanni carried a gun, police said.
The man's wife, Nanthawadee Phenjaroenwattana, told police that she was in the pickup at the time of the shooting.
Two men approached on a motorcycle as the couple reached their home, and one man riding pillion started shooting, she said.
Her husband was a property developer in Canada who came to Thailand to live two years ago.
He travelled quite often between Canada and Thailand on business.
Khun Nanthawadee said her husband eventually opened a property business in Bangkok, Mafar Co Ltd, with a branch on Phuket.
He bought a townhouse on Phuket and used the townhouse as an office.
He also bought three rai in the Patong hills and was building a seven-storey development, in three phases, on the property.
Building began in the middle of 2008 and phase II was about to start, Khun Nanthawadee said.
Police believe the motive could concern Mr Degioanni's business and valued his estate at about 100 million baht.
_____________________________________________________
Patong Killers Strolled to Date with Death
PhuketWan.com Shanya Phattrasaya and Alan Morison Feb 21, 2009
THE KILLERS of a Canadian property developer in Patong parked their motorcycle some distance from the scene and strolled to meet their victim, Phuketwan has learned in visiting the scene today.
Usually, professional hired assassins strike from the back of a motorcycle, with the rider ready to make a speedy getaway.
The killers of Canadian property developer Francis Alex Degioanni parked their motorcycle about 60 metres from their target, and walked up the suburban street to their date with death.
It is even possible they had two getaway motorcycles, or a vehicle of a different kind.
It was Thursday evening, about 6.40pm, with dusk about to close in. February 19 marked Degioanni's 34th birthday, and he was all set to join friends who, unknown to him, had prepared a surprise birthday cake.
Outside a new three-storey block of townhouses, Degioanni had just parked his dusty black pickup diagonally, with his lucky 7777 numberplate just visible as the sun set.
Alongside the Degioanni office-home, with its glass windows and vertical blinds, the proprietress of the four-storey My Living Room hotel smiled as she saw the two men approaching, thinking they might be incoming guests.
Degioanni's Thai wife of five months, Nanthawadee Phenjaroenwattana, was out of the pickup and opening the door of the office-home when the two men drew level with the driver's side window.
Degioanni's young child, from a previous relationship, was said to be in the cabin of the pickup.
Not far from the scene, around a corner and up the hill, is Degioanni's seven-storey Panorama Condo building, where workers were still busy when Phuketwan passed today.
The killer (or killers) fired eight times, the marks of the bullethole entry points revealed today in the vehicle, impounded at Kathu Police Station.
One of several bullets that passed through the metal skin of the vehicle in exiting also pierced the metal rollerdoor shutter of the office next door.
If Khun Nanthawadee had been seated in the car, she would probably have been struck.
The men ran to their getaway vehicle, or vehicles, parked in front of the Bromma guesthouse on the corner, and took off.
The proprietress of the hotel, who smiled at the killers, told police they were most probably Thais but could have been Singaporeans or Philippinos.
The address at 162/11 Soi Ton Village, off Phang-Mung Sai Kor Road, the main road behind Jungceylon shopping mall, parallel to and between Nanai Road and Rat U Thit 200 Pee Road, is a neat suburban zone of new townhouses in a sea of development.
Dust covers everything around here in a fine layer as building projects of all kinds enter different stages of erection. Karaoke bars open alongside apartment blocks.
Closer to Jungceylon, there's a large and garishly decorated bar going in, along with a Thai boxing ring and what appear to be apartments above. Nearby is the Patong Snooker Club.
The neat two-storey townhomes in the block where the Degioannis moved in sometime before New Year are mostly filled with relatively prosperous Thai families.
The village has been open now for two years. One of the original home-makers, at a townhouse nearby, was an eye-witness - or rather, an ear-witness - to the killing.
''Khun Tum'' is as much of a name as he was prepared to give, fearing repercussions from the killers. Here's what he told us:
''I heard a gun go off several times. I heard someone [Khun Nanthawadee] shouting 'Help me! Help me!
''When I ran across the road, I saw her husband lying in the seat of the pickup. I checked his pulse.
''Mister! Mister! I called. But there was no pulse. His wife said 'Help me move him into the passenger's seat so we can drive to hospital.'
''But I said: 'It's no use. He is dead already.' She said: 'Don't say that! He's not dead! Please help!'
''I told her that if we moved the body, we would have problems with the police. Otherwise, the evidence might be disturbed.
''Then a bit later, the police came.
''The Canadian guy seemed nice. His wife had had an international education and dressed well. She could speak English very well and was clearly no bar girl.
''He always seemed to be working every day until midnight or one o'clock.. They were quiet neighbors, never a problem.
''The place inside was very well decorated, a nice place to live. They seemed very happy. They had a housekeeper who stayed there, too.''
As Phuketwan reported early on Saturday, senior police have taken over the investigation after a call from the Governor, Dr Preecha Ruangjan, for the case to be solved quickly.
Murders involving expats are rare on Phuket.
Told family in Quebec he previously survived attempted poisoning
Francis Alex Degioanni was gunned down Thursday in Phuket, Thailand.
A Canadian property developer died Thursday after being riddled with bullets in his car outside his condominium in Phuket, Thailand.
Francis Alex Degioanni, 34, appeared to have been the victim of a planned hit, freelance reporter Andrew Drummond, speaking from Bangkok, told CBC News.
"He drove out of the condo which he owned on Patong Beach on the island of Phuket and was stopped by two gunmen who shot at his body eight times. Police found wounds to his head, chest, arms. He died before reaching hospital," Drummond said.
Degioanni's family in Quebec said he called home last month to say he had been poisoned and that he blamed a business partner in Thailand.
His girlfriend, Nanthawadee Phenjaroenwatthana, said they were preparing to celebrate his birthday on Thursday when he received a phone call and said he had to go out, the English-language Phuket Gazette reported.
She said that when he got into his car, two men pulled up on a motorbike, opened fire and then fled, the newspaper said on its website.
Police were looking into whether the attack was related to a business dispute or some other motive, such as romantic jealousy, it said.
Selling condos to tourists
Degioanni had been doing business in Phuket for five years, selling condos to foreign tourists, the newspaper said, attributing the information to a police superintendent.
According to police, Degioanni was in conflict with a Thai partner with whom he co-owned a property development business in Phuket, a common arrangement under a law that limits foreign ownership of local companies, Drummond said.
Degioanni had accused the partner of cheating him out of the equivalent of about $750,000 and the matter was before the courts, he said.
Degioanni's father, Mario, lives in Val-des-Monts, Que., in the Gatineau area north of Ottawa.
The father's wife, Charmaine, told the CBC's Amanda Margison that her stepson was engaged in a bitter legal battle with a female business partner, whom he blamed for what he thought was an attempt to poison him.
The family asked him many times in recent years to come home, but he insisted his life was there, she said. He had lived in Thailand for nine years and had a three-year old daughter who remains there, she said.
Other Canadian killings
Two Canadians were shot and killed in Thailand last year.
Calgarian Leo Del Pinto died in Thailand in January 2008 following a confrontation with an off-duty police officer. Del Pinto, 24, died of two gunshot wounds to his face and torso in the northern Thai town of Pai.
In February, a Victoria man died from a gunshot wound to his head at his home in Ranong. Dale Henry, 48, worked for an oil drilling company in Nigeria, but split his time between that country and Thailand.
Henry's wife and two men have been charged in the case.
_____________________________________________________
Phuket Shooter Kills Expat Developer
PhuketWan.com/Shanya Phattrasaya and Apinya Saksri February 20, 2009
Update: Bangkok Police on Phuket for Asean are now investigating the murder
A CANADIAN property investor was shot dead on Thursday evening in Patong, police have told Phuketwan.
He was named as Francis Alex Degioanni, aged 34. He was an island resident, a ''rich'' businessman, and a former Bangkok model, married to a Thai national.
Francis Alex Degioanni poses as a model on jurgita.com
Phuket's Governor, Dr Preecha Ruangjan, on Friday called for police to solve the case as fast as possible.
On Saturday, Phuketwan was told that senior Royal Thai Police from Bangkok had taken charge of the case.
Coincidentally, senior police were on the island for the weekend's important gathering of Asean fiance ministers.
Because the case involves an expat and what appears to be a professional killer, senior police decided to upgrade the investigation and take it out of the hands of local police.
Earlier, Patong's Kathu police superintendent Grissak Songmoonark said he was called to the scene of the shooting about 6.45pm on Thursday.
At 162/11 Soi Ton Village, off Sirirat Road, he found a black Toyota pickup with bullet holes in the driver's seat.
Police told Phuketwan on Saturday that the victim had been hit by eight shots.
When police arrived, Mr Degioanni was in the care of Kusoldham Foundation paramedics. It is believed he died at the scene or on the way to hospital.
Police found a gun in the pickup. Mr Degioanni carried a gun, police said.
The man's wife, Nanthawadee Phenjaroenwattana, told police that she was in the pickup at the time of the shooting.
Two men approached on a motorcycle as the couple reached their home, and one man riding pillion started shooting, she said.
Her husband was a property developer in Canada who came to Thailand to live two years ago.
He travelled quite often between Canada and Thailand on business.
Khun Nanthawadee said her husband eventually opened a property business in Bangkok, Mafar Co Ltd, with a branch on Phuket.
He bought a townhouse on Phuket and used the townhouse as an office.
He also bought three rai in the Patong hills and was building a seven-storey development, in three phases, on the property.
Building began in the middle of 2008 and phase II was about to start, Khun Nanthawadee said.
Police believe the motive could concern Mr Degioanni's business and valued his estate at about 100 million baht.
_____________________________________________________
Patong Killers Strolled to Date with Death
PhuketWan.com Shanya Phattrasaya and Alan Morison Feb 21, 2009
THE KILLERS of a Canadian property developer in Patong parked their motorcycle some distance from the scene and strolled to meet their victim, Phuketwan has learned in visiting the scene today.
Usually, professional hired assassins strike from the back of a motorcycle, with the rider ready to make a speedy getaway.
The killers of Canadian property developer Francis Alex Degioanni parked their motorcycle about 60 metres from their target, and walked up the suburban street to their date with death.
It is even possible they had two getaway motorcycles, or a vehicle of a different kind.
It was Thursday evening, about 6.40pm, with dusk about to close in. February 19 marked Degioanni's 34th birthday, and he was all set to join friends who, unknown to him, had prepared a surprise birthday cake.
Outside a new three-storey block of townhouses, Degioanni had just parked his dusty black pickup diagonally, with his lucky 7777 numberplate just visible as the sun set.
Alongside the Degioanni office-home, with its glass windows and vertical blinds, the proprietress of the four-storey My Living Room hotel smiled as she saw the two men approaching, thinking they might be incoming guests.
Degioanni's Thai wife of five months, Nanthawadee Phenjaroenwattana, was out of the pickup and opening the door of the office-home when the two men drew level with the driver's side window.
Degioanni's young child, from a previous relationship, was said to be in the cabin of the pickup.
Not far from the scene, around a corner and up the hill, is Degioanni's seven-storey Panorama Condo building, where workers were still busy when Phuketwan passed today.
The killer (or killers) fired eight times, the marks of the bullethole entry points revealed today in the vehicle, impounded at Kathu Police Station.
One of several bullets that passed through the metal skin of the vehicle in exiting also pierced the metal rollerdoor shutter of the office next door.
If Khun Nanthawadee had been seated in the car, she would probably have been struck.
The men ran to their getaway vehicle, or vehicles, parked in front of the Bromma guesthouse on the corner, and took off.
The proprietress of the hotel, who smiled at the killers, told police they were most probably Thais but could have been Singaporeans or Philippinos.
The address at 162/11 Soi Ton Village, off Phang-Mung Sai Kor Road, the main road behind Jungceylon shopping mall, parallel to and between Nanai Road and Rat U Thit 200 Pee Road, is a neat suburban zone of new townhouses in a sea of development.
Dust covers everything around here in a fine layer as building projects of all kinds enter different stages of erection. Karaoke bars open alongside apartment blocks.
Closer to Jungceylon, there's a large and garishly decorated bar going in, along with a Thai boxing ring and what appear to be apartments above. Nearby is the Patong Snooker Club.
The neat two-storey townhomes in the block where the Degioannis moved in sometime before New Year are mostly filled with relatively prosperous Thai families.
The village has been open now for two years. One of the original home-makers, at a townhouse nearby, was an eye-witness - or rather, an ear-witness - to the killing.
''Khun Tum'' is as much of a name as he was prepared to give, fearing repercussions from the killers. Here's what he told us:
''I heard a gun go off several times. I heard someone [Khun Nanthawadee] shouting 'Help me! Help me!
''When I ran across the road, I saw her husband lying in the seat of the pickup. I checked his pulse.
''Mister! Mister! I called. But there was no pulse. His wife said 'Help me move him into the passenger's seat so we can drive to hospital.'
''But I said: 'It's no use. He is dead already.' She said: 'Don't say that! He's not dead! Please help!'
''I told her that if we moved the body, we would have problems with the police. Otherwise, the evidence might be disturbed.
''Then a bit later, the police came.
''The Canadian guy seemed nice. His wife had had an international education and dressed well. She could speak English very well and was clearly no bar girl.
''He always seemed to be working every day until midnight or one o'clock.. They were quiet neighbors, never a problem.
''The place inside was very well decorated, a nice place to live. They seemed very happy. They had a housekeeper who stayed there, too.''
As Phuketwan reported early on Saturday, senior police have taken over the investigation after a call from the Governor, Dr Preecha Ruangjan, for the case to be solved quickly.
Murders involving expats are rare on Phuket.
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