After her controlling and possessive partner brutally attacked Manthana Khantharat, the victim sought refuge in a bathroom, where she remained for hours before her death.
Natthawut Tammajanta, who admitted to killing the 37-year-old, might spend the next 23 years and 4 months behind bars.
The two Thai nationals began dating after working together at the Siam Kingdom restaurant in the Newington neighborhood of Sydney.
But on December 18, 2022, following a dispute, Khantharat brutally attacked Tammajanta at their Albion Park Rail home, south of Wollongong, killing her.
As part of the assault, he choked her and hit her several times over the body and face.
According to Justice Natalie Adams’s sentencing remarks, upon arrival at the scene, the responding police officers noticed that Tammajanta had repeatedly attacked Khantharat, leaving his hands lacerated and swollen.
“At one stage, the deceased had locked herself in the bathroom to escape the assault, but the offender was able to break down the door to continue his attack,” she told the state’s highest court.
As a “jealous person” who was insecure in the relationship and suspected his partner of being unfaithful or too close to other guys, Tammajanta characterized himself as such.
A person with whom the victim had an intimate relationship murdered her in her own home, according to Justice Adams.
“The dominant feature of the relatively short relationship was the offender’s intense irrational jealousy and his desire to control the deceased’s behaviour.”
The non-parole period for Tammajanta was set at sixteen years and four months.
