A Thai man who raped and murdered a German backpacker was yesterday (July 10) sentenced to death.

Ronnakorn Romruen, 24, pounced on Miriam Beelte, 26, as she visited a historic stone monument on the island of Koh Si Chang, eastern Thailand, on April 7.

He then brutally raped her before battering her head with a rock to kill her and stop her reporting the attack. He then concealed her body below leaves on a secluded hillside.

Cops arrested the local beach cleaner later that evening who admitted to having raped and killed Miriam Beelte from Hildesheim, Germany.

Ronnakorn has been remanded in custody since the murder and admitted all charges but was sentenced to death yesterday (July 10) because the ''crime was so severe a reduced sentence was not possible''.

A court judgment found that Ronnakorn was guilty of rape, murder to conceal a crime, concealing a body, taking the drug methamphetamine and drunk driving.

He was sentenced to death and will have one month in which to appeal the verdict before being put on death row.

The judgment released from Chonburi Provincial Court read: ''Ronnakorn Romruen was guilty of raping (14 years in jail), murdering to conceal the crime (death penalty), drug taking and driving (eight months in jail), concealing the death of a person (one year in jail).

''However, the defendant confessed during the arrest, the investigation, and the legal consideration due to the amount of evidence against him.

''The court, therefore, will mitigate the penalty by half for the charge of raping (reduced to seven years jail), drug driving (reduced to four months), and concealing the person's death (reduced to six months).

''But the overall crime is so severe that of the defendent deserves to die and the punishment of the dealth panalty will stay in place for the charge of murdering to conceal a crime for which there is no mitigation.''

Miriam's body was found by shocked locals dumped behind boulders and covered in leaves on the remote Thai island near the city of Pattaya on April 7.

CCTV showed how Ronnakorn had followed her up the hill of the ancient stone monument while pestering her to sleep with him.

When she rejected him. The drug-crazed killer then pinned her to the ground and raped her.

He later told police that after she struggled free, he chased her and battered her face with a rock until she was dead as he didn't want her to report the attack.

Ronnakorn then hid her body behind rocks and covered it with leaves.

Officers said that Ronnakorn confessed the murder after four hours of interrogation and he was taken back to his shabby wooden home in the early hours of the morning to re-enact parts of the crime.

After killing the holidaymaker, he calmly watched TV while smoking cigarettes and drinking beer.

Ronnakorn's mother, Nongluck Phosang, 43, had previously called on prosecutors to hand down the death penalty to her son.

She said: ''My son and I didn’t live together, so I didn’t know much about what he usually did in the day. I only knew that he worked on a boat and collected rubbish from the beaches.

''He is a quiet guy who doesn’t talk much. He likes to stay alone at home watching TV and listening to music, just like most of the guys.''

''I deeply apologise to the girl’s family on behalf of my son. I never thought that he could do anything like this. He deserves the full lawful punishment and I am willing to accept the judge's decision.''

A young backpacker was found dead after being brutally raped and murdered on a Thai island.

Miriam Beelte, 26, from Hildesheim, Germany, was discovered dumped behind rocks with severe head wounds on idyllic Koh Si Chang off the east coast of Thailand.

The tourist had been repeatedly smashed in the face with a rock and had her leg broken.

Police said her skirt had been torn and there was blood coming was from her groin indicating she had been raped.

A resident noticed the body partially covered by leaves at around 6 pm while they were walking through the area.

They called the police who stopped anyone from leaving the island.

Local man Ronnakorn Romruen, 24, was arrested shortly after and confessed to raping the holidaymaker while high on methamphetamine then murdering her to stop her from reporting the attack to police.

He admitted then trying to conceal the body by throwing it behind rocks and covering it with dried leaves.

Footage from the early hours of the morning today shows him being taken back to his house in handcuffs to point out the clothes he had been wearing when he murdered and raped the young woman.

He was then put on a speedboat and taken the mainland in Chonburi province where he will be charged with premeditated murder, rape and concealing a body.

Police Colonel Angkul Sarakul said: ''The suspect was brought to the station in the early hours of the morning. Based on his confessions, he will be charged with premeditated murder, rape and concealing a body. The body of the victim will be sent to the forensic hospital.''