Opera-singing bodybuilder on the run after brutal killing of British father in Thailand is FOUND – and says he will face justice… if it’s at home in Norway
A fugitive body builder wanted for choking to death a British father in a Thai hotel has revealed that he is prepared to hand himself in provided he can return to his native Norway to face justice.
Roger Bullman is at the centre of a global Interpol hunt after being charged for the murder of IT consultant Amitpal Singh Bajaj, who was staying in an adjoining room in a luxury hotel in Phuket last August.
Bullman, 54, fled Thailand just 24 hours after being granted bail following a hearing in September and has been on the run since.
Speaking from a secret location in Asia, where he is in hiding, Bullman said that he was prepared to return to Norway to stand trial and a possible prison sentence so that he could be near to his daughter and because he is more likely to get a fair hearing.
‘That’s just what I am thinking of now. I feel I have disappointed her so much,’ he added.
‘To come home and just be with my daughter. If I’m put in jail and things like that, it doesn’t matter. If only we are in the same country, and she can come to visit me.’
He admitted that he was determined to remain on the run because he is too afraid of the harsh prison conditions in Thailand, where he was due to stand trial and believed that the justice system there is against him.
The alternative is so damn bleak. I do not want to turn myself in (to Thai authorities) because they have prepared such a big case against me now,’ he added.
‘They have increased the charge of violence with death, to murder, without my understanding. I was stabbed with a knife, and he was alive when I left the hospital, so I don’t understand it.’
Bullman, a burly 6ft 2in bodyguard and martial arts expert has been described by authorities as ‘dangerous’ and was last known to be in Vietnam.
He was tracked down by Norwegian television channel TV 2 Nyhetene, which has not revealed his exact location.
Bullman stands accused of choking to death 34-year-old Mr Bajaj in front of his wife, Bandhna, also 34 and their two-year old son Veer after breaking into their hotel suite.
The two men became embroiled in a heated argument after the Norwegian started singing opera and yodelling on the balcony of his room at 4am.
Following the altercation, both were rushed to hospital, where Mr Bajaj eventually died.
Breaking down in tears, Bullman said that he is filled with remorse that Veer has lost his father.
‘I think it’s horrible to think that a little boy has lost his dad. I think about my daughter like that, too.
‘As soon as we start with the kids stuff, I cannot speak any more. Sorry. They are the ones that go above and beyond,’ he said.
Since going on the run, he estimates that he has spent around £167,000, sold all his belongings and rarely ventures out.
‘I don’t know how long I can continue like this,’ he adds.
‘I stay in a small room 23 hours a day, in fear of going out. Most days I have stayed in the room without going out the door are 11 days.’
Bullman repeated his earlier claim that he acted in self-defence and that it was Mr Bajaj who initially attacked him with a knife.
He said: ‘Then he banged on my door. I thought there were hotel guards. Then I open the door, and then he is standing there.
‘The first thing he does when I open the door is to put a knife into my shoulder so that my whole arm dies out. After that, it’s black for me.’
Following the Brits murder, Mr Bajaj’s widow gave a completely different version of events to that presented by Bullman.
Bandhna revealed: ‘Bullman suddenly appeared in our room. He was red in the face, fully naked, and charged quickly towards us while making animalistic sounds.
‘He was kicking and punching all the time. I said into the phone words to the effect of ‘he’s in … come quickly … send someone’.
‘My husband is hero. He fought off this naked stranger who got into our room and saved the lives of me and our young son.’
Source: Daily Mail
