Killer jailed for fatal prison attack on Barrow man

Naruenart Mongkolchart will serve five years and four months for causing the death of Sean Flanagan, from Dalton.

He lost his life in Pattaya Remand Prison on March 30 2012 after another inmate jumped on his chest.

Barrow Detective Chief Inspector Bob Qazi and his liaison with Interpol saw an arrest finally being made.

A postmortem was carried out on April 24 2012 after Mr Flanagan's body was repatriated.

In May last year, former coroner for south Cumbria Ian Smith recorded a verdict of death by injuries following an assault or assaults.

Mongkolchart was convicted of the Thai equivalent to manslaughter, which is ‘causing death to another person by inflicting injury upon the body without intent to cause death’.

Speaking after sentence Mr Flanagan’s mum Olive Blamire said that he would always be remembered for the lively personality that he was. A family statement read: “He was not a saint and had many ups and downs in his life, but always had a strong belief in the church. He loved to travel when he could and had a special fondness for Thailand as he felt a free spirit when he was there. “He was an intelligent lad with a great singing voice and a sharp sense of humour as his many friends and family would agree. He has left a massive void in our lives and we miss him every day. We will never forget his huge smile. “We had to ensure a three year battle with the Thai authorities and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. It took them eight months to begin a serious investigation into the death and this was only due to pressure from us. “I’d like to thank Cumbria Police for all of their support and in particular DCI Qazi for all of his efforts. It was as a result of his liaison with Interpol that an arrest was eventually made.”

Records show Mr Flanagan was arrested between March 21 and 24, 2012 on suspicion of stealing a moped. He was transferred to prison on March 26 where he was said to have been behaving unusually. It was said by several people he was losing his self control, refusing to sleep and exhibiting violent behaviour disturbing other prisoners. When he was visited by embassy officials on March 29, Mr Flanagan was in wheelchair, heavily bruised and speaking incoherently. At first, prison officials explained the injuries by claiming Mr Flanagan had fallen off a wall onto a drinking trough. The investigation later revealed that he had been assaulted. A second, and fatal, assault occurred some time after the embassy official’s visit.

The now retired DCI Qazi said: “Sean’s death was a terrible blow to all his family and friends. I cannot disguise my deep admiration for the hard work carried out by his mother, Olive Blamire, that resulted in Sean’s killer being brought to justice in Thailand. Olive worked tirelessly to obtain justice for Sean and knowing I was just a small part of that effort gives me tremendous personal satisfaction. I too would like to thank John Woodcock and his office for the efforts they all put in to help Olive and her family. Sean’s family deserve great credit for their perseverance in the face of several obstacles; and also thanks for their co-operation throughout with the police which was greatly appreciated.”

DCI Furzana Nazir, who took over the case after the DCI retired, said: “This has been a difficult investigation due to it being a death abroad where there are different laws, investigative methods and numerous authorities being involved. “I am glad that justice has finally been done and hope that it brings some comfort to the family. Our thoughts are with them at this difficult time.”

Mr Woodcock said: “This has been a long road for Sean’s family who have had to overcome many obstacles in their pursuit of justice. “I am glad to have played a part in pressing for an investigation to be carried out into the circumstances surrounding Sean’s death. “While nothing can bring him back, his family can at least now have closure through this conviction and my thoughts are with them all.”