Six people died in Bangkok hotel from cyanide – possible murder-suicide

Six people who were found dead in a Bangkok hotel room were apparently killed by cyanide, Thai authorities said on Wednesday. The incident bore the hallmarks of a subsequent murder and suicide.

Traces of cyanide were found in the blood of the four Vietnamese and two Vietnamese Americans, Kornkiat Vongpaisarnsin, head of the department of forensic medicine at Chulalongkorn University’s medical school, said at a news conference on Wednesday. A CAT scan showed no other injuries.

The deadly substance was also found in residue from several used teacups and two thermos flasks next to a table with untouched food.

All six foreigners were still alive when food, tea and milk were delivered to Room 502 of the Grand Hyatt Erawan at 2pm on Monday, Bangkok deputy police chief Noppasin Poonsawat said. American Sherine Chong was in the room when they arrived, and the others were seen on surveillance video entering the room one by one afterward.

When they did not leave as planned on Tuesday, a maid discovered the bodies. Four of them were in the living room and two in the bedroom. The police therefore ruled out a mass suicide because the two did not wait to die together.

In fact, two of the victims appeared to have been trying to reach the door when they collapsed, said Bangkok police chief Lt. Gen. Thiti Sangsawang.

Noppasin said the dead, aged between 37 and 56, included the person who administered the poison. The incident may have been related to a business dispute, he said, stressing that terrorism had not played a role and there was no danger to tourists or other visitors.

Among the victims was a couple who, along with two others, had invested about $278,000 (10 million baht) to build a hospital in Japan, Noppasin said. The group may have been meeting to discuss problems with the project.

The U.S. State Department said it was monitoring the situation and assisting the FBI in its investigation, officials said.

The Hyatt is “deeply saddened by this tragic situation” and is cooperating with local authorities, spokeswoman Angelina Hue told the Washington Post.

With News Wire Services