Thai court sentences Australian to death for Hells Angels murder

PATTAYA, Thailand - A Thai court on Tuesday sentenced an Australian man to death for murdering a Hells Angels gang member in 2015, a lawyer at the trial said.

Australian Antonio Bagnato, 28, and US national Tyler Gerard, 22, were arrested after police found the battered body of Wayne Schneider in a shallow grave.

Bagnato was sentenced to death by a court in the resort city of Pattaya for detaining, assaulting and then killing the victim, Gerard's lawyer told Reuters.

Gerard was jailed for two years as an accomplice to the crime, said the lawyer, Phipat Chantakul.

Bagnato's lawyer declined to comment.

The court in the city, 100 km (60 miles) southeast of the capital Bangkok, found that the killing was premeditated, as the defendants had rented a house and a car used in committing the crime, Phipat said.

Gerard's sentence was reduced from an original three years because he had co-operated with the investigation, his lawyer said.