‘Purple lips, untouched Thai food’: Autopsy confirms Cyanide killed foreigners at Grand Hyatt in Bangkok

Autopsy confirms Cyanide killed foreigners at Grand Hyatt in Bangkok/AFP

MINT | July 17, 2024 | 04:05 PM IST | Breaking News, United States of America | Follow on Google News

‘Purple lips, untouched Thai food’: Autopsy confirms Cyanide killed foreigners at Grand Hyatt in Bangkok

‘Purple lips, untouched Thai food’: Autopsy confirms Cyanide killed foreigners at Grand Hyatt in Bangkok

Bangkok Hotel Deaths: On Wednesday, a Thai hospital confirmed that they found Cyanide in the bodies of the six foreigners who died under mysterious circumstances in the luxurious Grand Hyatt Erawan hotel on Tuesday. An autopsy was conducted on the six Vietnamese nationals who were found dead in a Bangkok hotel, which showed traces of Cyanide in the bodies of the deceased.

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The bodies showed traces of the rapid-acting chemical and had purple lips, indicating a lack of oxygen, Chulalongkorn Hospital’s Kornkiat Vongpaisarnsin told reporters, adding more tests were being conducted.

The bodies of six people of Vietnamese origin — two who held American citizenship — were discovered in a suite at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in the tourist centre of Bangkok on Tuesday afternoon.

“We are convinced that one of the six people found dead committed this crime,” said Noppasil Poonsawas, a deputy commander of Bangkok police.

Bangkok police revealed in a press briefing that cyanide poisoning was suspected, with a possible motive linked to substantial debts totalling millions of baht.

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The deaths of three men and three women, aged 37 to 56, under mysterious circumstances have sparked speculation, initially mistaken by some local media as a mass shooting incident.

But photos released by police of a bloodless crime scene showed bodies scattered around the room among plates of untouched Thai food and two thermos flasks and cups.

Initial examinations revealed the presence of Cyanide in six cups, according to police.

Tourist destination Thailand

Thai authorities are actively working to enhance the kingdom’s reputation as a secure destination for tourists, which can be affected by alarming incidents like the recent mass poisoning in Bangkok.

Last October, a tragic shooting incident at the Siam Paragon Mall, situated in the same area, resulted in the deaths of three individuals.

This occurred shortly before the anniversary of a devastating nursery massacre in northern Thailand, where 36 lives were lost.

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Despite these challenges, Thailand saw an increase in tourism to 28 million visitors in 2023, marking a significant rise from the previous year’s 11 million visitors. However, it is still below the pre-pandemic peak of 40 million in 2019.

Efforts by the Thai government to rebuild trust and attract more tourists remain ongoing amid these unfortunate events.

MINT