Three men boarded their yacht in the Andaman Sea, near the Thai-Malaysian border.
They tied up Mrs Robertson, while they bludgeoned her husband to death with hammers, possibly slit his throat and dumped his body in the sea.

There have been reports that the body has been found by fishermen off Koh Adang but the identity is in dispute.

Mrs. Rpbertson spent perhaps 10 hours tied up naked in the cabin of the yacht, Mr Bean, while a man stood guard over her with a machete.
Speaking to media from her hospital bed, she said: "I heard the sound of people clambering aboard. I was naked. It was a very hot night.
"Three young men came in. They were holding hammers and they pushed me back and tied and gagged me.
"Then they went towards the forward cabin and I heard my husband shouting 'Get off my boat!'.
"I heard a scuffle and did not hear any more. They came back to me and made signs to me to start the engine, which I did.
"There was no sign of my husband. I think this was the first time I realised he might be dead. I waited and listened and heard nothing."

The three Burmese men left with the dinghy and Mrs. Robinson was able to free herself from her bindings. She knew the dinghy motor was having mechanical problems and would not run for very long so was urgent in getting above deck to raise the anchor and get the yacht under way.. She reported that she did see the pirates paddling back to the yacht but managed to get going before they reached the boat.

Thai police have the men in custody and report that they have confessed.

Many Australian sailors are familiar with the Robertson's as "Mr Bean" cruised the Whitsundays, often in company of the vessel "Perseverance".

Vessels are advised, Thailand's south may be more dangerous as Thailand suffers from violence caused by a Muslim minority and the "refugees" they draw from Burma, especially those from near the Bangladesh border area.

This update as of March 30, no body has been found. Earlier reports of a recovery of Mr. Robertsons body were found to be false. Under Thai law, no body, no prosecution for murder. The area where the body was dumped is notorious for currents that may prevent the body ever being found. The Burmese killers were 19, 18 and 17 years old.They have been charged with theft but not murder.