Tragedy In Bangkok: Six Found Dead In Luxury Hotel, Poisoned By Cyanide

Six people, including two US citizens, were found dead in a luxury hotel room in central Bangkok, allegedly poisoned by cyanide-laced drinks following a dispute over bad investments, Thai police reported on Wednesday.

The grim discovery occurred on Tuesday when staff at the Grand Hyatt Erawan, a five-star hotel in the Thai capital, entered the fifth-floor suite after the guests missed check-out by more than 24 hours.

Upon arrival, police found the bodies of three men and three women, untouched food wrapped in plastic on a table, and used cups with traces of white powder. The suite was locked from the inside, but a backdoor was left unlocked.

Initially, authorities searched for a seventh person believed to be part of the hotel booking. However, on Wednesday, they dismissed this line of inquiry, suggesting that one of the deceased poisoned the others with cyanide.

Among the deceased were two Vietnamese Americans and four Vietnamese nationals, including a married couple aged between 37 and 56.

Trairong Phiewphan, Chief of the Police Forensic Office, stated in a press conference that cyanide was found in the cups in the hotel room, and at least one of the blood samples from a deceased man contained traces of the chemical.

“Cyanide was found in the liquid inside the teapot and in all six coffee cups,” Trairong confirmed.

Images released by the Royal Thai Police showed cups on a coffee table next to two metal thermos flasks and a dining table set with plates of food, prepared as if for a meal.

Police are now trying to determine whether the victims were murdered or chose to take their lives. During the press conference, authorities indicated they were leaning toward the former.

Deputy Metropolitan Police Commissioner Noppasin Poonsawat suggested that one of the group members might have poisoned the others. This person had ordered the food and tea to the room and appeared stressed when staff arrived.

From interviews with hotel staff, police learned that one member of the group was alone in the room when the food arrived and was later joined by the other guests. The incident was likely linked to a “personal matter” and not organized crime, as relatives of the deceased mentioned a dispute over debt.

“One of the relatives said one of the deceased was an investment agent and all the deceased invested, but the business was not going as expected. They made an appointment to discuss the matter in Thailand,” Noppasin explained.

Two of the deceased were found in the bedroom, another at the dining table, and one appeared to have tried to reach the door before collapsing.

The group had arrived in Thailand on different dates and had booked separate rooms at the hotel. On July 15, they all moved into the same room and had room service delivered around 2 p.m. local time. No one left or entered the suite after 2:17 p.m., according to police.

The Grand Hyatt Erawan, located in a bustling tourist area in Bangkok, is near luxury shopping malls and restaurants. Adjacent to the hotel is the Erawan shrine, a popular landmark for Buddhist, Hindu, and Sikh communities and tourists. The shrine was also the site of a 2015 bombing that killed at least 20 people.

The US State Department acknowledged the deaths of the two US citizens in Bangkok, while Vietnam’s government stated that its embassy in the Thai capital was closely coordinating with Thai authorities.

“We offer our sincere condolences to the families on their loss. We are closely monitoring the situation and stand ready to provide consular assistance to those families,” US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Tuesday.

This incident is reminiscent of a case last year when Sararat Rangsiwuthaporn, a Thai woman, was arrested on suspicion of murdering her friend with cyanide. She was charged with at least 13 counts of premeditated murder in a separate poisoning case that shocked the country.