Tourist, 28, plunges 50ft to her death from edge of rooftop swimming pool at luxurious villa in Phuket
A TOURIST has died after plunging 50ft from the edge of a rooftop swimming pool at a luxurious villa on the Thai island of Phuket.
Veronika Kobzova, 28, a Ukrainian circus acrobat, had been relaxing around the
pool
when she walked to the edge and fell late at night.
Advertisement
5
Ukrainian circus acrobat Veronika Kobzova, 28, died when she fell from a rooftop pool in Thailand
Credit: East2West
5
She had been recently performing around Asia
Credit: East2West
5
The acrobat fell about 50ft from the apparently unguarded rooftop pool down into a gulley
Credit: East2West
The holidaymaker 'made a misstep' and tumbled down into an alley below, according to witnesses.
Friends rushed to check on her after she disappeared over the side, but she tragically could not be saved.
She was pronounced dead less than an hour after her fall at 3:30am, which inflicted serious 'head and chin' injuries.
Veronika was a member of a famous Ukrainian circus
family
.
Advertisement
read more in world news
Her uncle Mykola Kobzov, head of Circus Kobzov, said: 'In a tragic accident, my niece Veronika Kobzova has passed away.
'She fell from a height of 15 metres.
'Young, beautiful, successful — and now such a terrible loss.
'Veronika, we will always remember you. I love you. Our whole family is in mourning.'
Advertisement
Most read in The US Sun
Breaking
Pictures appear to show the rooftop pool without any protective barriers.
The pool reaches right to the edge of the building, beyond which there is a sheer drop down to a steep gulley with a concrete wall.
Horror as influencer, 19, plunges 150ft to her death from parasail after 'unfastening her safety harness during a panic attack'
Thai police are reportedly investigating her death, but foul play is not suspected.
A Thai report said: 'The blissful rooftop ambiance and the allure of a poolside walk culminated in an unintended peril.
Advertisement
'As her friends watched, her celebration turned to calamity when she misstepped at the edge of the rooftop
swimming
pool, plunging from the third floor into a narrow alley below.'
Veronika was comfortable with heights, with videos showing her pulling off dangerous aerial acts in her performances.
The tragic tourist hailed from Nikopol, in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region.
She had worked in the circus from the age of 12 - and later starred in the prestigious Cirque du Soleil and the German Roncalli Circus.
Advertisement
She also performed in Asia, most frequently China, and recently had been based in
Thailand
, reports said.
Phuket is Thailand's largest island and immensely popular amongst tourists, often as a starting point for trips to surrounding smaller islands.
5
The pool appears not to have any guard rails around it
Credit: East2West
5
Veronika came from a famous Ukrainian circus family
Credit: East2West
Advertisement
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sunday World
2 hours ago
- Sunday World
Irish woman who accused Madeleine McCann suspect of rape says he could've been stopped
Hazel Behan accused Christian Brueckner of raping her at her home in Portugal three years before the tot vanished An Irish woman who accused Madeleine McCann's suspected killer of rape has says he could of been stopped. Hazel Behan accused Christian Brueckner of raping her at her home in Portugal in 2004. He went on trial in 2020, accused of raping the Dublin woman and a number of other women, but was aquitted. She has now said he could have been stopped from attacking other women, and potentially kidnapping and murdering the British tot in 2007. 'I feel that those who were in a position and mandated a position to protect and serve and do their job didn't,' Behan told The State of Us Podcast hosts Tara Mills and Declan Harvey. Hazel Behan at home in Mullingar. Photo: Steve Humphreys 'It also places a huge amount of guilt in me because even though I know I couldn't have done anything more… it doesn't stop the guilt that I have. 'If I had shouted louder, that if I had made more of a fuss at the time, all of these things may not have happened to other people,' she confessed. 'I carry that because of them not doing their job, and that really, really upsets me. 'Like to a point that I feel that they need to be called out for that. 'I don't think all these years later I should be doing all, having to go through all this again because of the ineptitude of a police force.' 'There's people like me and other victims who believe they're victims of Christian Bruckner who have suffered as a result.' It comes as German police began fresh searches in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in connection with the disappearance of 3-year-old Madeline McCann. Search teams investigating Madeleine McCann's disappearance use a digger next to a derelict property close to Praia De Luz, Portugal. Photo: PA The search was reportedly prompted by the discovery of disturbing new evidence found on a hard drive hidden in Brueckner's 'secret lair'. Cops discovered a hard drive containing pictures at a disused factory in Neuwegersleben, Germany, which was purchased by Bruckner in 2008, just one year after the toddler vanished. Details of the find were reported by The Sun and Channel 4. The files were uncovered in 2016 when a dog ran onto the property and appeared to find a grave. When authorities dug, they discovered a deceased dog lying on top of a wallet containing six USB sticks and two memory cards, which reportedly contained disturbing materials. Following this, 100 cops launched a full-scale search, finding children's clothes and toys, as well as masks, chemicals and three black market guns. The sinister items also included stories allegedly written by the German national, one of which detailed the abuse of a four-year-old blonde girl. Missing Madeleine McCann and suspect Christian Brueckner News in 90 Seconds - 6th June 2025 Child abuse images, records of Skype conversations with paedophiles and 75 children's swimming costumes were also found, as well as a metal case of photographs depicting girls believed to be aged four and five. In 2020, Brueckner went on trial accused of five separate counts of rape and sexual assault which prosecutors allege he committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017. One of these charges related to the alleged rape of Westmeath woman Hazel Behan after he broke into her apartment via the balcony while she was sleeping. A court heard that she was raped by him in June 2004 while working as a holiday rep in Portugal. He was acquitted of all charges, but the Irish woman has now lodged an application to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) alleging inaction by Portuguese police in identifying and prosecuting Brueckner for her rape. Cops trying to find evidence of Brueckner's involvement in McCann's disappearance are in a race against time as he is expected to be released from prison in later this year. The German is serving time behind bars for the rape of an American woman in Praia da Luz in 2005. Madeline McCann vanished from her family's holiday rental in Praia da Luz two years later in May 2007. Madeleine McCann has been missing since 2007 The tot slept in a bedroom with her two younger twin siblings as their parents dined at a nearby restaurant with their friends. When Madeline's mother, Kate, checked on her children at around 10 pm, Maddie was not there, and the alarm was raised. The case of the missing girl captivated the world, and continues to do so as no trace of the 3-year-old has ever been found, despite an international manhunt to find her. No one has ever been charged in connection with her disappearance. If you've been effected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can contact the Rape Crisis Centre on 1800 77 8888.
RTÉ News
4 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Three drones targeting Moscow shot down, Russia says
Russian air defence forces have shot down three drones attempting to attack Moscow, according to the capital's Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. He did not provide further details but said that emergency services were working at the sites where debris had fallen. Russia's aviation watchdog said that Domodedovo and Zhukovsky airports in the Moscow region had temporarily suspended operations to ensure flight safety. It announced soon afterwards that services had resumed. Elsewhere, overnight strikes by Ukraine injured three people in the western Tula region, Russian officials said. Earlier, Ukrainian officials said that Russia had carried out a barrage of drone strikes across the country, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv. "Kyiv came under another attack involving UAVs and ballistic missiles" overnight, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine wrote on Telegram. Kyiv's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that four people had been confirmed dead and 20 were wounded - 16 of whom were hospitalised. Several fires broke out in various districts as a result of the shelling, including at a residential building, a civil infrastructure facility and a metal hangar while train tracks were damaged in the Kyiv area. Strikes also hit the western city of Lutsk and Ternopil region. "Today, the enemy carried out the most massive air attack on our region to date. There are multiple strikes," head of Ternopil's regional military administration Vyacheslav Negoda said. "We have begun extinguishing fires and assessing the damage and other consequences," he added. The shelling in Lutsk wounded five people. "We also have numerous broken windows in private homes, several educational institutions, and one damaged government facility," the city's Mayor, Igor Polishchuk, said on Telegram. Meanwhiile, buildings and cars were damaged in the western city of Khmelnytsky, according to the region's governor. Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to take revenge following a recent drone attack by Ukraine on Russian soil, which destroyed billions of euro worth of nuclear-capable bombers. He appeared to rule out a ceasefire or any direct talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Mr Zelensky said that Russia had issued an "ultimatum", demanding that his country fully pull out of four regions that Moscow claims to have annexed but does not fully control.
The Irish Sun
4 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
What is Ukraine's ‘mystery missile'? Russia quaking after Kyiv uses ‘new weapon' to blitz Putin on night of hell
VLADIMIR Putin has been left shell-shocked by a brand new mystery missile he claims Ukraine attacked him with overnight. A massive strike ripped through an airport in Bryansk and reportedly destroyed a placement of Putin's Iskander missile system. Advertisement 9 Vladimir Putin has been left shell-shocked by a brand new mystery missile he claims Ukraine attacked him with overnight in Bryansk Credit: East2West 9 The huge blasts targeted a Russian airfield with a giant mushroom cloud eruption seen by onlookers Credit: East2West 9 The severity of the attack has led to Russians accusing Kyiv of using German-supplied Taurus missiles Credit: Getty 9 Thursday saw one of the most explosive evenings of fighting for some time during the gruelling war. The night of hell saw The Russia tyrant hammered Ukraine with 407 drones and 44 missiles - unleashing a But a valiant Ukraine hit back with their own set of attacks. Advertisement read more in Ukraine war Dramatic footage shows one explosion, believed to be from the mystery weapon, followed by a powerful secondary blast. A follow up attack also took out a launcher for the Iskander a day earlier, Ukraine claimed. But the blasts were something never been seen before by the quaking Russians during their illegal invasion. This led to speculation on pro-Kremlin media channels that Ukraine may have fired a powerful German-supplied Taurus missile. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Putin-loyalists Tsargrad said on Telegram: 'Did the first Taurus strike Russia? "Unprecedented escalation in Bryansk and destruction of Iskander missiles.' Putin plotting 'final killer offensive' to WIN Ukraine war despite Russian losses nearing 1 MILLION As channel MIG Russia claimed the pinpoint Bryansk strike was carried out with Western-made long-range missiles. If it was a Taurus, it would mark the first ever time it has been used by Kyiv. Advertisement The Russians would also view it as an 'unprecedented escalation' in the conflict due to the damage the weapon can cause. Discourse around German weapons has ramped up in the parts 24 hours ever since Chancellor Friedrich Merz met in the Oval Office with Donald Trump. German sources have had to deny that any agreement had been reached during the talks to send supplies of long-range Taurus' to Ukraine. Merz had announced at the end of May that Ukraine's key backers - including Germany, France , the UK and the US - had all lifted restrictions on where donated weapons can be used. Advertisement And the announcement could even mean that Britain's bunker-busting Storm Shadow rockets are a nightmare for enemies as they are capable of dodging air defences. 9 The mystery blast from Ukraine saw two explosion ring out across the airfield Credit: East2West 9 Firefighters work at the site of a Russian drone attack in Kyiv Credit: Reuters Advertisement 9 A Russian bomb lands in Ukraine overnight Credit: AP The £800,000 missiles - already being fired within Ukraine - use GPS to precisely hit targets, and can travel at 600mph. The Taurus missile system is widely regarded as Germany 's equivalent to the Storm Shadow. The tit-for-tat attacks came hours after US President Donald Trump said it might be better to let Ukraine and Russia fight for a while. Advertisement The president has been so far unsuccessful on getting the two countries to agree to peace - with Moscow not moving on its demands. The American was full of praise for Ukraine though as he labelled The daring operation saw a fired up Putin's Advertisement It comes as a new report accused Putin of plotting a final killer offensive along three fronts to win the war this summer . The Russian army is nearing one million casualties in its bungled three-year-old invasion as Now, some 125,000 Russian soldiers are reportedly right now massing along the Sumy and Kharkiv frontiers, according to Ukraine's military intelligence. Over the past fortnight border villages have fallen to Russia as it is may to be preparing the ground for the offensive. Advertisement But some senior commanders in Ukraine believe that could be a feint and Russia is actually preparing to attack further south to push further into the Donbas, Russia is likely to attack through three areas near each other in the Donbas - Kramatorsk, Kostiantynivka, and Pokrovsk. 9 Fire and smoke rise in Kyiv following a Russian drone and missile strike overnight Credit: Reuters 9 Advertisement
