Australian fitness businessman Wayne Schneider was allegedly killed by his bodyguard due to a personal conflict, police say.
Antonio Bagnato, 26, was arrested in Cambodia and extradited to Thailand over the weekend for the kidnapping and murder of Schneider, a former Hells Angels leader, in Pattaya. He was taken to Provincial Police Region 2 office in Chon Buri Monday and appeared at a news conference led by police chief Chakthip Chaijinda, following the discovery of a cache of illegal weapons he allegedly owned.
The confiscated weapons, found at two of Mr Bagnato's properties in Chon Buri, included two assault rifles, a pair of handguns, ammunition, two tasers and brass knuckles, police said.
Police said apart from murder he would also be tried in a military court on the illegal weapons possession charges.
An initial investigation found Mr Bagnato was Schneider's personal guard. He allegedly hit Schneider's head several times with a brass knuckle, resulting in serious injuries.
Still, Mr Bagnato denies the charges, said Pol Gen Chakthip.
Investigators have added a personal conflict to their assumptions as another motive that includes their quarrel over an illegal drug business. Schneider, 37, had been charged previously with drug trafficking.
Mr Bagnato, a member of a motorcycle gang in Sydney, Australia, is accused of leading five men in abducting Schneider from a rented house in Pattaya's Bang Lamung district about 5am on Nov 30, killing the victim and then burying the victim's body on Khao Cheechan hill in neighbouring Sattahip district two hours later.
The suspect fled to Cambodia after the murder but according to local media reports, was nabbed in a hotel in Phnom Penh on Thursday. He was then deported to Thailand for prosecution.
One alleged accomplice, Tyler Gerard, 21, was also arrested last week and reportedly confessed to his role in the crime. The young Californian, who has lived in Pattaya since early this year, is accused of driving a rented Toyota pickup truck used in the abduction.
Another three suspects, who police believe have already left Thailand, are identified as American Isaac Stetson and two Australian men -- Michael Paul Copeland and a man identified only as Jay.
Officers are working with international police for their arrest and return to Thailand, police said.