The murder of Malcolm Robertson and assault of his wife, Linda, by three migrants from Burma is highlighted in the latest episode of Dark Waters: Murder In The Deep on Investigation Discovery.
Malcolm, of St Leonards, East Sussex, was a 64-year-old semi-retired entrepreneur who was living his dream of sailing around the world in his 44ft yacht named Mr. Bean, but in March 2009, his journey came to an abrupt and horrific end.
The Robertsons—who had been married for 25 years—were planning to leave their boat in Malaysia and fly to England to attend their son’s wedding. They had one day of sailing before they arrived in Malaysia and opted to get some rest before continuing their journey. It was during that time that three migrants named Eksian Warapon, 19, Aow, 18, and 17-year-old Ko, who were clad in their undergarments, boarded the yacht.
They began looking for food, but when they couldn’t find any, Warapon stated that he grabbed a hammer and went downstairs.
When Warapon entered Malcolm’s room, he demanded the couple’s credit cards and computer. Malcolm began yelling at Warapon to get off his boat while simultaneously walking toward him. That’s when he struck Malcolm twice with the hammer, causing him to lose consciousness.
Warapon said he struck him three or four more times, killing him, before throwing his body into the Andaman Sea in Thailand.
The trio also hit Linda with the hammer multiple times. They then tied her up and shoved tissue paper in her mouth and wrapped a towel around her face. She was locked in a cabin for nine or 10 hours, but she survived the ordeal.
An investigation led to the migrants’ arrest. They were initially charged with kidnapping, assault, and theft. Police were unable to charge them with murder because they hadn’t found Malcolm’s remains.
That changed on March 31, 2009, when a fisherman found Malcolm’s body floating about 10 miles north of Satun’s Lipeh Island. An autopsy was performed, and the results revealed that Malcolm had a broken rib, fractured skull, and a cut to his right ear.
Warapon and Aow pled guilty to the murder and were sentenced to 25 years in prison. Ko was also convicted of murdering Malcolm, but he will only be held in a correctional facility until he is 24.
Dark Waters: Murder In The Deep — Dead Of Night, airs at 10/9c on Investigation Discovery.