Briton on round the world voyage is killed by pirates in Thailand

A British sailor has been bludgeoned to death by pirates attempting to steal his dinghy.

Malcolm Robertson was murdered and his body thrown overboard as his yacht, the Mr Bean, lay anchored off the southern coast of Thailand. His wife Linda suffered minor injuries following the attack.

The couple, believed to be from St Leonards-on-Sea in Sussex, had been sailing around the world for more than 10 years, occasionally flying home to see friends and family.

Mrs Robertson has told police her husband was beaten to death with a hammer by men trying to steal the small dinghy kept on their 44ft yacht.

Police have arrested three migrant workers from Burma. Police Colonel Virat Ohn-song said today: "They tried to steal the dinghy and beat Mr Robertson with their fists and hammers until he died."

Police were called to reports that the yacht was adrift off Satun, a Thai province close to Malaysia. It is claimed the suspects tried to flee in the dinghy as a Thai boat approached but were caught. The men were attacked by a mob as they were brought ashore. The British Embassy in Thailand confirmed today that it was helping Mrs Robertson, who was rescued from the yacht by fishermen.

A spokesman said: "We are aware of an attack overnight on a British couple off the coast of Satun in southern Thailand.

"We are urgently pursuing this case with the Thai police." Police were today searching for Mr Robertson's body.

Mr Robertson, thought to be 64, and his 58-year-old wife began their adventure when they set sail from Eastbourne on 15  May 1998. Mr Robertson charted their progress on an internet blog as they reached Australia and New Zealand via the Caribbean and the Panama Canal. They then sailed to the Far East, spending a lot of time in the islands around Malaysia and Thailand.

In September 2007, according to the blog, they briefly put the yacht up for sale for £220,000, declaring: "We have loved every moment of the trip and never held back." Items for sale included a 3.1 metre-long inflatable dinghy with two outboard motors.

It appears the Robertsons had a change of heart about selling their yacht. They recently posted an appeal on the internet for like-minded sailors to join a "loose rally" beginning next January, through the Indian Ocean's islands and the Red Sea, and on to the Mediterranean.