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A 93-year-old Australian accused of sex crimes against Chiang Mai children has asked the court to free him because, he says, he is dying of cancer anyway.


When arrested in 2010 on charges of multiple sex abuse against children, Karl Joseph Kraus walked to the court.


Karl Joseph Kraus, first arrested in 2010, has been held in prison awaiting trial because he tried to skip bail and flee to Myanmar last year.

"I'll be dead" before a trial can be held, Mr Kraus said, according to a report on Tuesday in the Sydney Morning Herald of Australia.

He claimed he is suffering from terminal prostate cancer. The Chiang Mai Criminal Court will hear his plea to be released on March 18.

Mr Kraus is accused of molesting four young sisters, all of them under age. He allegedly lured them to his home with promises of chocolates and English lessons when the youngest girl was only five.

When he was arrested, police said they seized more than 100 photographs of naked children - some with Mr Kraus in them.

Police say Mr Kraus gave his young victims money. They also allege he emailed some of the obscene pictures of youngsters overseas, suggesting he was part of an international paedophilia network.

After his arrest three years ago, the court granted him bail of 400,000 baht. He was photographed at the court, and appeared sprightly, and drove his own car around Chiang Mai.

Last August, he was detained in Myanmar, where he allegedly asked authorities to arrest him and deport him to Australia. The Myanmar border officials declined, and sent him back to Thailand, where he was re-arrested and had his bail revoked.

He has stepped up his complaints and allegations that Thai prison and justice officials have denied him medical treatment. His lawyer has told the court Mr Kraus is unfit to stand trial.

"Nobody helps me. This is terrible," the Australian newspaper quoted Mr Kraus. "They put me in jail when I was sick. I can’t walk but they still put me in prison."

bangkokpost.com