Latest news with #GraemeDavidson
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE I dated the Aussie Army Major accused of his wife's 'kayak murder' - but there was a VERY big secret he kept from me
An army major accused of murdering his wife in a kayak drowning incident after 26 years of marriage began looking for a new young love within months of the tragedy. Graeme Davidson, 55, planned a new life overseas soon after the death of mum-of-three Jacqueline, 54, and jetted off to start afresh in Thailand just five months later. Ms Davidson drowned while canoeing with her husband on Lake Samsonvale, north of Brisbane, on November 27, 2020. It was initially thought to be a tragic accident and Queensland Police at the time said there were no suspicious circumstances. But on May 4, as Davidson made a flying visit back to Australia, detectives swooped to arrest him for his wife's alleged murder and an alleged $1million life insurance plot. Davidson has now been charged with murder, fraud and attempted fraud. Daily Mail Australia recently revealed Davidson left Brisbane in April 2021 to move to the Thai resort of Hua Hin, 200km south of Bangkok, where he married Pick Pattraporn, in December 2022. It can now be revealed his new Thai wife was just the latest of his romantic conquests in South East Asia. Real estate agent Ploy Ranu, then 28, connected with Davidson on a dating app and was excited to go on a date with the wealthy widower Not long after he first touched down in Thailand, he signed up on several dating apps and quickly began looking for love with local women. Scots-born Davidson, who served 33 years in both the British and Australian military, scoped out Thai women almost 30 years his junior. But he made clear to all potential dates that he was watching out for 'gold diggers' - and would quickly dump anyone showings signs of only being interested in his cash. Real estate agent Ploy Ranu, then 28, connected with Davidson on one of the apps and was excited to go on a date with the former military man. 'We met on an online application, we talked for a while and then decided to meet,' Ms Ranu told Daily Mail Australia. 'He seemed like a fun, calm, reasonable person who cared about his appearance and health and he dressed well. 'He told me the lady should work, but didn't tell me what else he wanted in a partner. 'But I think appearance, conversation and occupation also seemed to play a part in his choice.' Ranu was impressed when Davidson pulled out all the stops taking her to Supatra By The Sea, considered to be the fanciest restaurant in Hua Hin. The couple finished off the evening with drinks after at nearby La Birra Bistro Beer and Wine. While she said Davidson spoke of his wife and children during their time together, he never once mentioned Ms Davidson was dead. 'He said that he had broken up with his wife, but did not give details about how they broke up,' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'He has a house and farm in Australia and wanted to give the house to his daughter to live there. 'He talked a little about his home abroad and his daughter and son but didn't talk much about his wife.' Davidson also showed off the plush beach house house he'd almost finished renovating, and told her it was the second property he owned in Hua Hin. However he later cooled on Ms Ranu and decided she was not the right match for him, cutting off all contact suddenly. 'He watches how you are, how women are... like for example the place and the food that she chooses,' Ms Ranu said. 'If she chooses to go to a fancy place and orders expensive food every time, then he thinks she hasn't gone to a nice place before or he thinks she is a gold digger. 'If he feels this way, he will not continue.' Ms Ranu said that Davidson's cold rejection initially left her feeling vulnerable. 'I felt sorry after we didn't go forward. Inferior, like I needed to improve and wasn't ready for this man,' she said. Davidson - who was a captain in the British Army and proudly wore an impressive array of medals at ceremonial events - was active in Hua Hin's expat community. He married Ms Pattraporn, also a real estate agent, in a traditional ceremony in December 2022. Dressed in a kilt with his bar of medals, Scots-born Davidson was filmed dancing down the street as he tied the knot, surrounded by his new wife's family and locals. Ms Ranu said the first she knew of Davidson's arrest was when she heard about it on the local news last week The set of miniature medals Davidson wore on his wedding day represent active service with the British Army in Northern Ireland, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Yugoslavia as well with the Australian Army in Afghanistan. His adult son and two daughters do not appear in any of the pictures or video from the celebrations which went on late into the night. It's believed his son Hamish has since joined him in Thailand and his daughter Robyn recently visited her father in Asia. Davidson was arrested when detectives raided the Brisbane home where he was staying while in Australia and found him sleeping on a camp bed in the lounge room. A close friend, who has known him since 2010, told Daily Mail Australia of his shock at the arrest. 'This is very raw and I know the children well,' said the friend, who wished to remain anonymous. 'Jacqui was a beautiful woman and very friendly, Graeme was a financially and career-driven individual.' The former friend of the couple is now helping detectives with their investigation. Ms Ranu said the first she knew of Davidson's arrest was when she heard about it on the local news last week. She admits she was shocked initially but Ms Ranu said she feels sorry for Ms Pattraporn with her husband now languishing in an Australian jail. 'His wife will be so sad and confused,' Ranu said. 'I think she will be scared for now, but that will soon pass.' Ms Pattraporn is being supported at the couple's home in Hua Hin by Davidson's son, Hamish who has joined her from his home in Bangkok.
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Grim reality of the White Lotus LBH 'Losers' who flock to the Hua Hin Thai bolthole of army major Graeme Davidson accused of his first wife's murder in kayak 'drowning'
Retired army major Graeme Davidson joined a long line of travellers when he sought refuge in Thailand 's coastal resort of Hua Hin after his wife drowned while kayaking in Australia. The Thai royal family has been coming here since the 1920s when they began building palaces to escape Bangkok's brutal humidity and enjoy summer retreats. Australian rocker Jimmy Barnes has a bolthole in Hua Hin which he and his Thai-born wife Jane call their second home and visit twice a year. In the past decade, Hua Hin has also become a retirement mecca for Westerners - many of them from Britain and Australia - attracted to the laidback lifestyle and low cost of living. Scottish-born Davidson, who spent 22 years in the British Army before moving to Australia and serving 11 more years in uniform for his adopted country, arrived in Hua Hin as a widower in April 2021. On Sunday, the 55-year-old was arrested after returning to Brisbane for what has been described as a family matter and charged with murdering his wife of 26 years, Jacqueline, in November 2020. Police allege Davidson drowned the 54-year-old beautician while the couple was kayaking at Lake Samsonvale, a popular recreation spot 40km north of the Queensland capital. Jacqueline's death was initially considered to have been an accident but after further investigation Davidson was accused of killing her and then seeking to access more than $1million in life insurance. Davidson is charged with fraud and attempted fraud offences related to those insurance claims, as well as murdering the mother of his three children. The dual-citizen's arrest has made Davidson the subject of international headlines and a hot topic of conversation among the many other expats in Hua Hin, where he had lived quietly for the past four years. In that time, he bought a four-level beachside home worth about $660,000 - having advertised for a gardener and maid before the purchase - and married a young local woman. Davidson had moved to Hua Hin, 200km south of Bangkok in Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, five months after his wife died, and about a year into the Covid pandemic. Hua Hin refers to both a district and a city which sits between the Tanwasri Mountain Range and the Gulf of Thailand. To Davidson, it must have seemed a tropical idyll. The region, famous for its beaches, temples and night markets, is promoted by tourism authorities as the Thai Riviera and has become a popular holiday destination for Bangkok's middle class. A foreign national living in Hua Hin and accused of committing a serious crime in Brisbane creates barely a ripple in Thailand but why it took police so long to accuse Davidson of murder is big news in Australia and Britain. That Davidson has remarried and one of his children, son Hamish, has come down from Bangkok to stay with his stepmother following his father's arrest, only adds to the interest. Graeme Davidson had been living with his new bride at this four-storey home, pictured, set back one street from the beachfront on a quiet cul-de-sac in Hua Hin Leigh Higgins hosts a morning program on Hua Hin's Surf Radio and interviewed Davidson - who she had never previously met - ahead of Armistice Day in November last year. Higgins did not recall if Davidson discussed his personal life in the parts of their conversation which did not go to air but said word of his arrest had spread through Hua Hin's expat community. She described Hua Hin as like 'a small country town' but with a growing population of about 80,000 which might swell by 10,000 to 15,000 around Christmas. Higgins divided the estimated 5,000 expats - known in Thai as 'farang' - into foreign males with Thai partners such as Davidson and his second wife, single foreign males and foreign couples. 'Everybody's got a story of why they're here,' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'Some are good and some are not so good.' Davidson appears to have enjoyed his new life in Hua Hin but did not quite fit the stereotypical image of older white males in Thailand, supposedly dubbed LBHs by locals. Not because he is an ex-soldier – there are plenty of them - and not because he found a beautiful young Thai bride in Pick Pattraporn. Davidson stood out from many other similar male expats who have chosen to see out their days in Hua Hin because he is not fat, grey-haired, bald, or even balding. The LBH tag covers Western men aged from their 40s to 60s who go to countries such as Thailand seeking young Asian women and bluntly stands for 'Losers Back Home'. The term was made famous in season three of the hit HBO series The White Lotus when a young white woman who had moved to Thailand with her much older partner used it to describe the phenomenon. 'You'll notice a lot of bald, white guys in Thailand,' Chloe, played by Charlotte Le Bon, told Aimee Lou Wood's character Chelsea. 'The locals call them LBHs. Losers Back Home.' Davidson was well-known in some of the Hua Hin drinking spots where older expats congregate but according to friends, he had been more interested in playing pickleball with his wife than bar-hopping. One of the places Davidson drank was Cheers Restaurant and Bar, a popular destination for expats in one of Hua Hin's busy entertainment sectors, where happy hour runs from 9am to 6pm. It was at Cheers that Davidson helped organise Anzac Day and Armistice Day services and met up with other members of the Hua Hin Veterans Group. When Daily Mail Australia visited on Wednesday night there was AFL, golf and snooker playing on three televisions, and ice-cold bottles of Singah beer being served in stubbie holders for 80 baht ($3.80). Traditional Thai food was on offer but twice as many menu items were listed as 'European'. Among the fare were fish fingers and chips as well as sausages with chips, eggs and peas or baked beans. In nearby streets, skimpily-dressed bar girls working from seedy clubs touted for sex from doorways and pool tables but they were not welcome at Cheers and the customers clearly didn't want them there. No one at Cheers wanted to give their name when speaking about Davidson but that was apparently more out of shock and confusion over his arrest than trying to distance themselves from the alleged murderer. 'He was upset when he came over here,' one fellow British expat said of Davidson's arrival in Hua Hin. 'He used to talk about his ex-wife. He was upset about his wife. 'He moved into a long-term relationship. He wasn't running around bars. He wasn't out gallivanting. He was playing pickleball regularly, twice a week. 'He was a good member of the community. He was settled down, just living a normal life.' The same expat described Hua Hin as a 'family place', unlike some of the fleshpots in Thailand. 'Here it's couples and families,' he said. 'That's why it's one of the top destinations for people to retire. It's not Phuket and it's not Pattaya.' The expat said none of Davidson's mates in Thailand could possibly know what had happened five years ago in Brisbane when his wife died. 'He's innocent until proven guilty,' he said. 'There's always two sides of the story. 'I'm not into rumour-mongering. I don't know enough about the case to comment at this stage. Nobody does really. 'I think it's a bit of a shock to everybody. Everyone's surprised.' One of Davidson's other old haunts, Father Ted's Irish Pub and Steakhouse, is hugely popular with retired British citizens who come for live music seven nights a week and the Sunday afternoon roast. On Wednesday evening, a mix of older white men with younger Thai women and white couples sang along cheerily as the Bangkok Beatles belted out Yellow Submarine and Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da. As at Cheers, most of the clientele had heard about Davidson's arrest but no-one wanted to be quoted by name when discussing him or what might have happened five years ago in Brisbane. 'He drank, he enjoyed himself and there was never any issue,' one Irish regular said. 'He never made a problem inside here. 'Innocent until proven guilty. I don't know his wife but he played pickleball with my mother.' He was arrested on a flying trip back to Australia, after detectives made an early morning swoop on a Brisbane address and found him asleep on a cap bed in the home's lounge room
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Inside the tropical Hua Hin lovenest of army major Graeme Davidson accused of murdering his wife in Queensland kayak 'drowning' - where their SON is now hiding out with his father's new young Thai bride
The son of a retired army major accused of drowning his first wife while kayaking in Queensland is holed up with his father's new bride in Thailand. Hamish Davidson has come down from his home in Bangkok to stay with Pick Pattraporn at the coastal resort of Hua Hin while his father Graeme languishes in an Australian prison cell. On Sunday, Graeme Davidson was charged with murdering his wife of 26 years - Hamish's mother Jacqueline - at Lake Samsonvale, north of Brisbane, in November 2020. Police allege Davidson killed Jacqueline after their marriage had broken down and later tried to claim more than $1million in life insurance policies. Glasgow-born Davidson spent 22 years in the British Army before emigrating to Australia and serving 11 more years in uniform for his adopted country. He moved to Hua Hin, 200km south of Bangkok, five months after Jacqueline's death and in December the following year married Pattraporn. The 55-year-old bought a four-level home near the beach where his son and second wife were supporting each other when Daily Mail Australia spoke to Hamish on Friday. Hamish came downstairs for a brief conversation and said neither he nor his stepmother wanted to discuss the arrest of his father or the murder and fraud charges he is facing. 'We don't wish to speak with the media,' the heavily tattooed son said in a thick British accent. 'We'd appreciate privacy through this.' His stepmother later told Daily Mail Australia in a telephone call: 'I don't have anything to say.' After Daily Mail Australia left the house, a woman believed to be Pick Pattraporn parted the curtains on the third floor and had a peek outside. A Thai maid was earlier seen doing chores around the house and a young Thai man ran errands, including a trip to a supermarket in recent days. Police did not initially think Jacqueline Davidson's death was suspicious when the 54-year-old beautician drowned while kayaking with her husband on November 27, 2020. But coronial inquiry led detectives to cast doubts over Jacqueline's death and Operation Victor Harlow was launched to investigate whether it was a homicide. Davidson, who had moved to Hua Hin in April 2021, was arrested while visiting Brisbane for a family matter last weekend and was refused bail. Detective Acting Inspector Steve Windsor told reporters on Monday that the fraud charges against Davidson concern money allegedly obtained by life insurance claims. 'The combined life insurance was in excess of $1million,' he said. 'And there was an attempted fraud, a claim was made. 'Incidents are not always what they initially seem, so I thank the detectives for their diligent work in this lengthy and arduous investigation.' Davidson was well-prepared for his move to Thailand a year into the Covid pandemic, posting his plans on the Hua Hin Expats Facebook page. 'I am flying into Bangkok in April before moving to Hua Hin,' he wrote on April 4, 2021. 'Can you still fly in and get a 30 days visa? 'I already have health insurance (explicitly covering COVID) and can buy a flight out if required. I also have both a UK and Australian passport.' By October the following year Davidson was asking for recommendations for a part-time gardener and a full-time maid for work near Hua Hin hospital. A month later he was expressing interest in buying a house between the beach and one of Hua Hin's main roads. 'I'm specifically seeking houses under market value that have possibly been on the market a while and probably need some kind of renovating,' he wrote online. Davidson refined his desired location to south of Hua Hin airport and no more than 250m from the sea. He set a maximum budget of 40 million baht (about $1.9million). 'I don't mind if one house or many less expensive houses,' he wrote. 'Obviously if you are selling land I need enough money left to build something on it within my budget. A tent on 40,000 land won't rent.' While Davidson stated he intended to rent out the property he wished to purchase, the description of what he wanted to buy matches where he ended up living. That place is between a main road and a beach near Hua Hin hospital in the Bor Fai district south of the airport. The home has a pool and jacuzzi and was last offered for sale for about 10 million baht ($470,000) but after recent renovations might be worth 14 million ($660,000). A local real estate agent explained foreigners can buy a house in Thailand but they cannot purchase land. Property sale prices are not available publicly. Davidson registered a company called Davidson Holidays Pty Ltd in October 2021. Company records list Davidson as the director with a Thai national holding 51 per cent of shares and the other 49 per cent in the hands of an Australian. Davidson appears to have lived a carefree existence in his beachside retreat. He once put out a Facebook plea: 'Does anyone know where you can buy wild caught salmon - not farmed?' In June 2022, Davidson provided an online review of a restaurant and the 'absolutely delicious' menu he was 'working through one night at a time'. 'A particularly well stocked bar and excellent value for money,' he wrote. 'Friendly service and warm atmosphere.' In December that year, almost two years to the day after his first wife's death, Davidson remarried and was pictured grinning alongside his beautiful young bride as they posed with fistfuls of cash while toasting each other. The groom was dressed in a kilt as he was filmed dancing down the street, surrounded by his new wife's family for the nuptials. Hamish and his two sisters do not appear in any of the pictures or video posted on social media from the celebrations which went on late into the night. Two months later, one of Davidson's friends described a night out with him and his 'lovely wife' at Hua Hin floating market - a collection of shops on piers connected by wooden walkways. Graeme Donaldson spent much of his time in Hua Hin playing pickleball with his wife (pictured, circled) with both ex-pats and locals Davidson had settled into married life for the second time in Thailand, where foreigners can get a retirement visa if they are aged 50 or over and do not work. The visa can be renewed every year if its holder has 800,000 baht in the bank or can show they earn at least 65,000 baht a month from a source such as a pension paid by their homeland. Donaldson spent much of his time in Hua Hin playing pickleball with his wife. He was also active in the Hua Hin Veterans Group, helping organise Anzac Day and Armistice Day gatherings at a bar popular with expats. English-language media outlet Surf Radio noted on its Facebook page this week that Davidson had been charged with murder in Australia. Davidson's mate Walter Meier responded to Surf Radio's post by urging those rushing to judgment to show caution. 'Totally shocked!' Meier wrote. 'And not convinced of anything yet. 'Graeme is a good friend. I listened carefully to him tell me this story more than once. At this point, all we know is an arrest was made.' Davidson made no appearance when his charges were mentioned at Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday. His case will return to court on May 19.
Scottish Sun
07-05-2025
- Scottish Sun
Brit army major charged with murdering wife in Kayak ‘accident' moved to Thailand with new bride after her death
A FORMER British army officer charged with murdering his wife in a kayaking incident had moved to Thailand with a new bride following the death. Graeme Davidson, 55, has been charged with domestic violence murder, fraud, and attempted fraud. 5 The alleged killer Graeme Davidson, 55, married a local woman, Pick Pattraporn in Thailand Credit: Facebook 5 Ex-Army captain Graeme Davidson who has been charged in Australia with murdering his wife Jacqueline in November 2020 Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk 5 He was arrested upon his return to Australia Credit: Queensland Police Service He was arrested in Brisbane on Monday while visiting from his current residence in Thailand. Police allege that he killed his wife and attempted to claim more than $1million AUD (£483,000) in life insurance policies following her death in November 2020. But Davidson is reported to have left Australia five months after his wife died. He moved to Thailand where he remarried a young bride named Pick Pattraporn at a traditional ceremony in late 2022. Davidson was reportedly active in the expat community in Thailand, where it is believed his son had joined him according to the MailOnline. He was back in Australia to visit family when he was arrested. Jacqueline Davidson, 54, died after falling into the water during a kayaking trip at Lake Samsonvale, Queensland. Her death was initially believe to be a tragic accident, but a homicide probe was launched following further coronial investigations. A Queensland police statement says: "Initially, the woman's death appeared to be non-suspicious." Detective Acting Inspector Steve Windsor told reporters: "The cause of death was drowning but it was a case of talking to witnesses and gaining further evidence that the matter appeared suspicious." He added that detectives had gathered witnesses and expert statements, as well as analysis of lake conditions. He said: "Incidents are not always what they initially seem, so I thank the detectives for their diligent work." Davidson had served in the British Army for 22 years before he transferred to the Australian Army. A former friend told Daily Mail Australia that his deceased wife was a "beautiful and very friendly" woman. She had worked as a beautician in the Brisbane suburb Chermside. Police had reportedly been considering extraditing Davidson from Thailand but decided against it, according to reports. The opted instead to arrest him when he returned to Australia. Bodycam footage of his arrest shows cops entering the room where he was sleeping on a fold-out sofa. He can be seen sitting upright and throwing off blankets before being escorted out. Det Insp Windsor added that police would allege there was "some form of breakdown in the relationship" at the time of Jacqueline's death. He further said the fraud charges relate to Davidson allegedly claiming, and attempting to claim, life insurance policies. He said: 'The combined life insurance was in excess of $1 million. They were quite extensive.' Police want anyone who can provide further information to come forward. 5 He remarried in Thailand in a traditional ceremony Credit: Facebook
The Sun
07-05-2025
- The Sun
Brit army major charged with murdering wife in Kayak ‘accident' moved to Thailand with new bride after her death
A FORMER British army officer charged with murdering his wife in a kayaking incident had moved to Thailand with a new bride following the death. Graeme Davidson, 55, has been charged with domestic violence murder, fraud, and attempted fraud. 5 5 He was arrested in Brisbane on Monday while visiting from his current residence in Thailand. Police allege that he killed his wife and attempted to claim more than $1million AUD (£483,000) in life insurance policies following her death in November 2020. But Davidson is reported to have left Australia five months after his wife died. He moved to Thailand where he remarried a young bride named Pick Pattraporn at a traditional ceremony in late 2022. Davidson was reportedly active in the expat community in Thailand, where it is believed his son had joined him according to the MailOnline. He was back in Australia to visit family when he was arrested. Jacqueline Davidson, 54, died after falling into the water during a kayaking trip at Lake Samsonvale, Queensland. Her death was initially believe to be a tragic accident, but a homicide probe was launched following further coronial investigations. A Queensland police statement says: "Initially, the woman's death appeared to be non-suspicious." Detective Acting Inspector Steve Windsor told reporters: "The cause of death was drowning but it was a case of talking to witnesses and gaining further evidence that the matter appeared suspicious." He added that detectives had gathered witnesses and expert statements, as well as analysis of lake conditions. He said: "Incidents are not always what they initially seem, so I thank the detectives for their diligent work." Davidson had served in the British Army for 22 years before he transferred to the Australian Army. A former friend told Daily Mail Australia that his deceased wife was a "beautiful and very friendly" woman. She had worked as a beautician in the Brisbane suburb Chermside. Police had reportedly been considering extraditing Davidson from Thailand but decided against it, according to reports. The opted instead to arrest him when he returned to Australia. Bodycam footage of his arrest shows cops entering the room where he was sleeping on a fold-out sofa. He can be seen sitting upright and throwing off blankets before being escorted out. Det Insp Windsor added that police would allege there was "some form of breakdown in the relationship" at the time of Jacqueline's death. He further said the fraud charges relate to Davidson allegedly claiming, and attempting to claim, life insurance policies. He said: 'The combined life insurance was in excess of $1 million. They were quite extensive.' Police want anyone who can provide further information to come forward. 5 5
