Australian tourist found dead in Thai hotel room
The tourist, reportedly aged in his early 20s, was discovered by a hotel staff member in the district of Tambon Thepkrasattri on the holiday island of Phuket on Wednesday morning, local time.
Police were called around 10am, local time, and found the man in bed wearing a black T-shirt and holding a mobile phone, The Phuket News reported.
A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed an Australian had died.
'The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian who died in Thailand,' the spokesperson said on Thursday night.
The holidaymaker, who is yet to be formally identified, was born in India and had an Australian passport, according to Reuters.
There were bandages on the man's elbow and wrist. His friends told local authorities the injuries were from a recent motorcycle accident, The Phuket News said.
Police said there were no signs of assault or a break-in in the room.
'I saw him lying there with a mobile phone resting on his chest. He was still on a call with someone. The line hadn't been disconnected, and he had died like that. There were no signs of struggle or anything suspicious,' police lieutenant colonel Thanom Thongpaen told Reuters.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
The conman, the jet and the Australian developer who helped bring him down
Ahsan Ali Syed had all the trappings of wealth: a private jet, a luxury Swiss apartment overlooking Lake Lucerne, an opulent office in Bahrain and a top-tier Spanish football team, Racing Santander. But after a decade on the run, the jet-setting fraudster is behind bars in Switzerland, largely due to the efforts of Sydney property developer Keith Johnson and New Zealander Mark Van Leewarden, a former undercover cop turned barrister who specialises in international fraud investigations. From September 2010 to May 2011, Syed scammed close to $50 million from Australian and New Zealand businesspeople who had trouble getting finance in the wake of the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis. 'He used an opulent office in Bahrain to lure the victims,' said Van Leewarden, who has spent years in pursuit of Syed. From all accounts, Syed looked the part sitting at his polished desk, wearing a silk cravat, bejewelled fingers and surrounded by busts of horse heads. His company, Western Gulf Advisory (WGA), boasted that 'Mr Ali is a trusted adviser of royal individuals and families, high-profile luminaries and people of public importance'. He also claimed to have a family fortune of $8 billion to invest. The truth was far different. Syed was wanted in India over an immigration racket and, having moved to London, he fled from there in 2005 owing £7800 ($12,520) in rent, along with a string of unpaid bills. Three years later he set up WGA and began his scam, offering loans of up to $US200 million. However, borrowers had to stump up an establishment fee worth 1.6 per cent of the loan. The promised loans to his 23 victims never eventuated.
The Age
an hour ago
- The Age
The conman, the jet and the Australian developer who helped bring him down
Ahsan Ali Syed had all the trappings of wealth: a private jet, a luxury Swiss apartment overlooking Lake Lucerne, an opulent office in Bahrain and a top-tier Spanish football team, Racing Santander. But after a decade on the run, the jet-setting fraudster is behind bars in Switzerland, largely due to the efforts of Sydney property developer Keith Johnson and New Zealander Mark Van Leewarden, a former undercover cop turned barrister who specialises in international fraud investigations. From September 2010 to May 2011, Syed scammed close to $50 million from Australian and New Zealand businesspeople who had trouble getting finance in the wake of the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis. 'He used an opulent office in Bahrain to lure the victims,' said Van Leewarden, who has spent years in pursuit of Syed. From all accounts, Syed looked the part sitting at his polished desk, wearing a silk cravat, bejewelled fingers and surrounded by busts of horse heads. His company, Western Gulf Advisory (WGA), boasted that 'Mr Ali is a trusted adviser of royal individuals and families, high-profile luminaries and people of public importance'. He also claimed to have a family fortune of $8 billion to invest. The truth was far different. Syed was wanted in India over an immigration racket and, having moved to London, he fled from there in 2005 owing £7800 ($12,520) in rent, along with a string of unpaid bills. Three years later he set up WGA and began his scam, offering loans of up to $US200 million. However, borrowers had to stump up an establishment fee worth 1.6 per cent of the loan. The promised loans to his 23 victims never eventuated.
ABC News
14 hours ago
- ABC News
Why are Thailand and Cambodia fighting each other?
Army vehicles drive along a road in Buriram province, after Thailand scrambled an F-16 fighter jet to bomb targets in Cambodia following artillery volleys from both sides that killed civilians, Thailand, July 25, 2025. (Reuters: Athit Perawongmetha)
