CALGARY
An off-duty police officer charged in the shooting death of a Canadian in Thailand has been released from prison because there was a problem with part of the investigation - a move that has angered the victim's family in Calgary.
Leo Del Pinto's father says he learned Friday that Sgt. Uthai Dechawiwat had been released.
"We, as a family, are upset. My wife is just devastated," Ernie Del Pinto said Sunday.
"I don't know what it was like on Friday, if it was sunny; I was so miserable."
Dechawiwat has been charged with premeditated murder and attempted murder in the Jan. 6 shooting in the small town of Pai in northern Thailand.
Leo, 25, was killed and his friend, Carly Reisig, was injured in the incident.
Dechawiwat has insisted the shooting was an accident - the result of a struggle.
The Pai police officer was off duty when the shooting happened.
Until now, he had been behind bars in Bangkok awaiting trial after he was denied bail in mid-October following an arraignment hearing.
Ernie said he was told part of the police investigation in Pai was not completed the way it should have been, resulting in Dechawiwat's release.
"It happens to be the Pai police department that missed a part in their investigation," Ernie said.
The Department of Special Investigation - a Thai federal agency - was officially appointed in April to also independently investigate the shooting.
Ernie said if the Pai police missed something, he could not understand why it was not caught by others looking into the shooting.
"They (the Pai police) definitely missed something. If it was by error, or if they wanted to, it should have never been missed by anyone else."
Ernie said he has been told the case will go on and the charges against Dechawiwat still stand.
"I've been reassured this procedure will continue," he said.
"All I want is a trial date."
Ernie and several other family members plan to travel to Thailand when the trial does go ahead.
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