Pattaya:
On September 30th, 2026, the Pattaya Provincial Public Prosecutor’s Office filed a criminal complaint against alleged ringleader Thana Kerdthong, also known as Pong, and several other suspects at Pattaya Provincial Court under black case No. อ.1038/2569. The court accepted the indictment. The charges arise from the July 26th disappearance and subsequent deaths of Diana Nazimova, 22, and her brother Roman Nazimov, 17, well as a Thai Family. Police recovered their bodies days later in a shallow grave in tambon Huai Yai after the suspects were arrested.
The nine counts listed in the indictment include illegal possession of firearms and ammunition; carrying firearms and explosives in public without justification; impersonating police officers; unlawful detention; aggravated nighttime robbery while posing as officials, using firearms and a vehicle, resulting in death, together with premeditated murder; rape by force while the victim was unable to resist, involving a firearm and resulting in death, together with premeditated murder and acts of cruelty; and concealing, moving or destroying corpses to hide the deaths and their circumstances.
The siblings, who had lived in Thailand with their mother since 2021, left home on a Honda ADV 150 motorcycle around 4 a.m. on July 26th to go to a convenience store and then vanished. Their mother reported them missing. Investigators later found the motorcycle dismantled and buried near an old cemetery in Huai Yai. Arrest warrants followed for Thana, 43, a local resident with a prior record that included firearms and attempted-murder convictions, and Thongchai “Thong” Srinil, 39. Officers arrested the pair on July 31st while they hid in a longan orchard in the Wang Sombun district of Sa Kaeo province, near the Cambodian border. They were reportedly trying to flee Thailand.
According to police accounts and initial statements reported by Thai media, the suspects said they targeted the motorcycle for theft. When the siblings resisted, Thana allegedly shot Roman and fatally beat Diana. Thongchai said he was ordered to help bury the bodies under threat. The pair then led officers to a forested area near Wat Yan Sangwararam / Map Fak Thong hill, where the remains were found in a grave about one meter deep. Roman had gunshot wounds; Diana showed signs of assault.
The same arrests quickly expanded the investigation. Suspects pointed police to a nearby coconut grove about two kilometers away, where officers found the bodies of a Thai family of three, Wichian Nawongsa, his wife and their teen daughter, who had been reported missing since late June. Police said the group had posed as police officers to enter the home, robbed the family and killed them. Two additional suspects, Chatchanan “Fluke” Paen-aiam and Atsadang “Ball” Chuwong, were later arrested. All four were denied bail in early August because of the gravity of the alleged crimes and flight risk. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul visited the sites and pledged a thorough investigation, citing damage to Thailand’s tourism image.
The Russian siblings case and the Thai family killings have been treated as linked by investigators but are proceeding on separate case files. State compensation of 300,000 baht was later paid to each set of heirs, totaling 1.5 million baht. Thana had been released from prison in early June 2026 after serving time for attempted murder and related offenses. Local reporting by our team at The Pattaya News documented the search, arrests, burial sites and background of the main suspect.
The case now moves into formal court proceedings at Pattaya Provincial Court. The defendants remain in custody with bail denied. The charges could potentially lead to the death penalty, which the family of the murdered Thais have demanded. The pleas of the suspects are expected in the near future.