Thailand is investigating the death of a 57-year-old Swiss tourist after her body was found near a waterfall on the island of Phuket, with signs that she had died of unnatural causes, Thai officials said yesterday.
The woman was visiting under the “Phuket Sandbox” scheme, a project to allow in foreign tourists who are vaccinated against COVID-19 to help revive a sector decimated by the pandemic, Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew said, adding that she had arrived on the island on July 13.
The woman appeared to have been dead for three days before her body was found, partially unclothed, Kitirath Phanpetch, a commander of the police precinct that oversees Phuket, said in an interview with TV channel MCOT.
Photo: AP
Although police have not yet determined the cause of death, Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Tanee Sangrat expressed condolences to the Swiss embassy in Bangkok, describing the case as a “murder.”
Thailand’s Phuket tourism scheme, in which vaccinated visitors can skip COVID-19 quarantine, but have to remain on the island for 14 days, has faced a difficult start particularly as the rest of Thailand faces a surge in COVID-19 infections.
The scheme attracted about 15,000 visitors during its first month last month, just 1 percent of pre-pandemic arrivals.
“After finishing the terms of the sandbox, she traveled to [the nearby island of] Krabi and returned,” Kitirath said.
She stayed at a hotel in Phuket that was about 2km from a waterfall where she was later found.
The body was found with swelling and bruises, Kitirath said, adding that results of an autopsy would be ready later yesterday.
“There was a black cloth covering the body, which suggests somebody placed it there and that the cause of death was unnatural,” he said.
Kitirath said police were investigating people with criminal records and migrant workers for possible involvement in the case.
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