Aussie on the run from Thai authorities makes it back to Australia after skipping bail on chartered yacht

AN Aussie fugitive on the run from Thai authorities made a daring, ultimately successful bid for freedom by sailing a luxury catamaran on an epic journey through the pirate infested waters of Southeast Asia to Darwin.

AN Aussie fugitive on the run from Thai authorities made a daring, ultimately successful bid for freedom by sailing a luxury catamaran on through the pirate infested waters of Southeast Asia to Darwin.

Owen Van Duren, 37, appeared in Sydney’s Central Local Court on Friday following his extradition from the Northern Territory in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Van Duren was arrested when he arrived in Darwin last Sunday, more than six weeks after fleeing Thailand with the help of his ex-special forces brother.

Van Duren, who has no fixed Australian address, had been behind bars in a Thai jail for at least six months accused of being involved in the brutal assault two airline hostesses mid-flight between Bangkok and Sydney in August last year, but was recently on bail pending an appeal.

Van had also been charged in Australia with assaulting aircrew and a warrant for his arrest was issued while he was overseas.

Commonwealth Prosecutors on Friday withdrew the charges in Sydney, making Van Duren a free man on dry land.

Owen Van Duren was arrested in Darwin and extradited from Thailand . Picture: Supplied

News Corp understands the Thai prosecution prevented Australian authorities from also prosecuting him.

The Thai embassy in Canberra did not respond to questions yesterday about whether Van Duren might be extradited back the Thailand.

Van Duren and his older brother, Shane Van Duren, 43, of Canberra, were reported missing in Thailand on July 21 after the 40ft catamaran they chartered, the Pina Colada, was not returned to the Yacht Haven Marina northeast of Phuket.

A source close to the yacht’s owner told the NT News an insurance claim was on the cusp of being approved after authorities believed the Van Duren brothers either sank in monsoonal storms or met with misadventure off the Thai Coast, where boats have been targeted by local pirates.

“It (was) not clear if the boat was stolen, sunk or something else happened to the charter crew,” the source said.

A Border Force spokesman said the agency had been tracking the catamaran for more than a fortnight before it arrived in Darwin.

Owen Van Duren allegedly skipped bail on a catamaran from Thailand. Picture: Supplied

“The vessel in question may have been stolen,” the spokesman said in a statement.

Documents filed in the Central Local Court show Commonwealth Prosecutors had planned to allege Owen Van Duren assaulted the two crew members on Thai Airways flight TG475 on August 3 last year.

The epic voyage to freedom in Australia and the questionable use of the yacht may could pose strife for the older Van Duren brother, who is on a suspended sentence.

Shane Van Duren was last year handed a suspended sentence in the ACT Supreme Court after pleading guilty to punching an RSPCA inspector and strangling and threatening to kill another during a dispute over his therapy dog.

The dog had been given to him to help him recover from PTSD, which was reportedly a result of his service in the Australian Army and French Foreign Legion.

Chief Justice Helen Murrell, in handing the older Van Duren brother a Two-and-a-half year suspended sentence last year said his friends vouched for him as a “calm, gentle and positive person”.

“Generally, the offender is on a positive trajectory,” Chief Justice Murell said at the time.

Owen Van Duren did not respond to attempts to contact him through his Sydney lawyer, and Shane Van Duren could not be reached for comment.

The yacht’s owner is understood to be arranging for its return to Thailand.

Shane Van Duren, 42.