Former Calgary-area paramedic killed in Thailand

The Calgary sister of a Canadian man shot in Thailand in an alleged hired killing said she has reason to believe the family of her brother's Thai wife has looted his home there.

Foreign Affairs officials confirmed that Dale Henry, 48, died from a gunshot wound to his head at his home in Ranong, Thailand, on Feb. 3.

Henry's wife, Maneerat, 27, and two other men — one reportedly her lover and the other allegedly a hired hitman — have been arrested and charged in the case. Several Thai reports allege the killing was carried out for about $2,000 Cdn.

Mary-Jane Matheson, Henry's 46-year-old sister, said she was disturbed to discover that her brother's belongings had been looted, allegedly by his wife's family.

"Her family has been in there. I phoned his house and his wife's sister answered. They're looting everything he had. His vehicles are gone. There's some man riding around town on his Harley," Matheson told the Canadian Press on Monday.

"I'm really hurt that people would do that to him after he had given everything he had and you know he gave her everything."  

Henry, who grew up in Victoria and spent years in Cochrane, Alta., as a paramedic and firefighter, worked for an oil drilling company in Nigeria. His brother said Henry split his time between that country and Thailand.

He married his Thai wife about six years ago.

"He just loved this woman with all his heart and trusted her. His bank account was open to her and he was building a house for her parents and bought four acres of land by some hot springs and all that kind of stuff," Matheson said between sobs.

The victim's brother, Richard Henry, said police believe the motive was a $1-million U.S. life-insurance policy provided by Dale's employer.

Henry is the second Canadian to be killed in Thailand in a month.

On Jan. 6, Leo Del Pinto, 25, of Calgary, died after being shot in the face and chest by an off-duty police officer in northern Thailand. His family has talked publicly about their frustration in dealing with Thai authorities.

Thailand's human rights committee is meeting later this week to discuss the Del Pinto death.

Matheson said she hopes Thai authorities treat her brother's case with due diligence. She was preparing Monday to meet her brother, Richard, in Thailand in hopes of finding out more about the killing.

The family has been in touch with officials from Foreign Affairs, who were the first to hear news of Henry's death.

"The Thai police advised our embassy in Bangkok that a Canadian citizen was murdered in south Thailand on Feb. 3. Following that, consular officials were in contact with the victim's family and have been providing consular assistance," said Bernard Nguyen, a spokesman for the department in Ottawa.

He declined to share any other information, citing privacy laws.