An Australian man whose girlfriend was killed after their jetskis collided off a Thai beach will be interviewed by police in Phuket on Thursday.
According to local media, Thomas Keating will be formally charged with reckless driving. His girlfriend, 20-year-old Emily Collie from Victoria, died after their jetskis crashed on Sunday.
Keating said the glare of the sun had blinded the pair temporarily, leading to the collision.
The chief of Karon police, Sanya Thongsawad, told The Phuket News that Keating would be required to present himself at Karon police station at 10am, local time, on Thursday to be formally charged and interviewed.
“We expect the case to take about a month to be heard in court,” he said. “He will not be allowed to leave Thailand while the case is being heard as is standard procedure, his name will be added to the immigration list to prevent him from leaving the country while the case is in court.”
But the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade circulated a statement from Collie’s family, who described her death as a “tragic accident”.
“We do not believe anyone was at fault,” the statement said. “In particular, we do not place any blame on Tom Keating, who we care about very much and we know loved Emily deeply.
“We are all heartbroken beyond words and, at this extremely sad time, we wish to be together with our family, with Tom and with other loved ones to grieve and celebrate Emily’s life.”
Collie’s family formally identified her body in Phuket on Wednesday.
Friends of Keating have begun a campaign calling on Thai authorities to allow him to go home to Australia. On his Facebook page, Keating wrote that Collie had been taken from him “far too soon”.
“I love you so much Emily and I wish I could just bring you back into my arms,” he wrote. “I’m so broken and I know I’ll never never be able to mend.”
