Australian man Antonio Bagnato sentenced to death in Thailand

Australian man Antonio Bagnato has been found guilty and sentenced to death by a Thai court for his role in the 2015 abduction and murder of Hells Angels gang member Wayne Schneider.

The judge at the Pattaya criminal court read the verdict on Tuesday to a packed courtroom.

Bagnato, who appeared in prison clothes and leg irons, had pleaded not guilty to the November 2015 abduction and murder of Schneider at a



luxury villa apartment at Pattaya, 150 kilometres from Bangkok.

Thai police alleged Bagnato was the mastermind behind the abduction and killing of Schneider.

Schneider’s naked body was found in a shallow sandy grave in Sattahip province in Chonburi, 30 kilometres from the villa.

Thai police said conflicts over a multimillion-dollar drug network extending from Europe to Asia lay behind the killing.