Death of billionaires in Koh Tao: Couple changed hotels, CCTV around pool not working, say police

[webfact]

Picture: Daily News

 

Thai media Daily News reported that the Thai police have yet to make up their minds about the death of a rich husband and wife on the island of Koh Tao in southern Thailand on Friday. 

 

Initially it appeared that the local police were prepared to write it off as an accident with no foul play.

 

Rakeshwar Sachathamakul, 59 and his wife Anshoo, 55, were found dead in the area of the pool at a five star resort.

 

Other print media named the resort as the Jamahkiri Resort and Spa.

 

The couple were the owners of the Novotel on Kamala beach, Phuket, owned an apartment block in Soi 12 of Bangkok, an area known for years as "Little India" due to the prevalance of Thai-Indian owned property.

 

Rakeshwar was also reportedly the managing director of two plastics factories in Prachinburi and Rayong. The couple were Thai baht billionaires.

 

The couple were of Thai/Indian heritage.

 

In an interesting twist Daily News revealed that when the couple arrived on Koh Tao on Friday they were unhappy with a room at a resort they had booked via an application and changed hotels to where they were later found dead by their son Rakesh, 34.

 

Picture: Daily News

 

Meanwhile Pol Maj-Gen Jiraphop Phuridech of the Central Investigation Bureau called in officers from the Crime Suppression Division and they were at the scene on Sunday. 

 

Local chief Pol Col Kriangkrai Kraikaew said that no definitive conclusions had yet been drawn.

 

The bodies of the deceased have been taken to the Police Hospital in Bangkok for an autopsy that will determine what was in their systems and how they died. This would take one to two weeks.

 

CCTV had been gathered from the Lomprayah Ferry and port that the couple and their son used to travel to the island from Chumphon. 

 

Five beer bottles - three from the poolside and two from the couple's room - were being examined for possible clues as to their deaths. 

 

It had been determined that the deepest part of the pool was 2.2 meters and no one else was there, said the chief. 

 

CCTV at the pool was not working but has been taken into evidence for examination nonetheless. 

 

After staff who were alerted arrived at the scene they saw the man lying by the pool ladder (apparently out of the water) and his wife floating face down one meter from the edge in one meter deep water. 

 

He stressed that all angles were being examined. 

 

Pol Col Wirachan Khunchaikaew of Region 5 said after the CSD visited that the actual depth of the water at its deepest point was 3 meters and the pool had been used for diving instruction.

 

He said that the relatives were not suspicious of the couple's deaths as they had underlying health conditions. The local police would continue their investigation. 

 

The hotel concerned advertises itself as a 5 star facility in a "relaxed seaside building" that is "6 km from Tanote beach and 7 km from Mango Bay". 

 

The story has attracted widespread interest both in Thailand and abroad especially considering the island's controversial history.

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2021-06-07

 

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[RandolphGB]

CCTV not working? What a surprise! 
 

 

[Surelynot]

Agatha Christie would be struggling with this one.

[connda]

Death of billionaires in Koh Tao: Couple changed hotels, CCTV around pool not working, say police

Why am I not surprised?
Start monitoring bank accounts.  Just saying.....

[ezzra]

Some police "investigators" can't even agree on how deep is the pool... it seems that the need and the urge to solve this crime is not on the top of their agenda.. I wonder why?... 

[Surelynot]

3 minutes ago, ezzra said:

Some police "investigators" can't even agree on how deep is the pool... it seems that the need and the urge to solve this crime is not on the top of their agenda.. I wonder why?... 

Lots of envelopes of different sizes being shuffled about.......can't rush these things.

[Surelynot]

22 minutes ago, webfact said:

He said that the relatives were not suspicious of the couple's deaths as they had underlying health conditions.

This has to be one of the most cretinous statements I have ever read.

[grantbkk]

Koh Death

[colinneil]

Well what a surprise cctv not working, and plod floundering around in the deep end, awaiting envelopes to appear.

[petedk]

24 minutes ago, colinneil said:

Well what a surprise cctv not working, and plod floundering around in the deep end, awaiting envelopes to appear.

I wonder if any of the CCTVs on Koh Tao work. That seems to be a problem there.

 

Edited June 7, 2021 by petedk

[jvs]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

After staff who were alerted arrived at the scene they saw the man lying by the pool ladder (apparently out of the water) and his wife floating face down one meter from the edge in one meter deep water. 

So who got him out of the water?Did the son do that?Not enough information here.

Just have to wait for more info but it does not seem so straight forward.

[Cake Monster]

25 minutes ago, petedk said:

I wonder if any of the CCTVs on Koh Tao work. That seems to be a problem there.

 

Its also a problem in many other areas around the Country.

Many seem to be powered by the contents of Brown Envelopes, and not Electricity when it comes to the seeking of truth.

[worgeordie]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

It had been determined that the deepest part of the pool was 2.2 meters and no one else was there, said the chief.

 CSD visited that the actual depth of the water at its deepest point was 3 meters and the pool had been used for diving instruction.

 

Another mystery how did the pool get deeper... really if they cannot get that right,

what hope.    But a witness at the scene said the man was out of the water and his

wife was in 1 meter of water, wonder if the hotel switched off the electricity and CCTV before

the police arrived....... 

regards worgeordie

[smedly]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

CCTV at the pool was not working

no surprise there

 

I would not go near this Island if they paid me

[smedly]

2 hours ago, connda said:

Death of billionaires in Koh Tao: Couple changed hotels, CCTV around pool not working, say police

Why am I not surprised?
Start monitoring bank accounts.  Just saying.....

who had motive if they were murdered

[Old Croc]

It's been stated the pool area had been closed down for some time because of covid, and therefore the CCTV was not working due to a lack of maintenance. Sounds plausible to me.

The closure would also explain the lack of poolside staff. 

 

The couple had been drinking and had health issues.

I have an open mind on the cause of death at this stage.

[Sametboy2019]

3 minutes ago, Old Croc said:

It's been stated the pool area had been closed down for some time because of covid, and therefore the CCTV was not working due to a lack of maintenance. Sounds plausible to me.

The closure would also explain the lack of poolside staff. 

 

The couple had been drinking and had health issues.

I have an open mind on the cause of death at this stage.

That maybe but both dying at the same time. 

Dual heart attacks or drowning. Seems unlikely. Feel electrocution could be possible.

[RichardColeman]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

He said that the relatives were not suspicious of the couple's deaths as they had underlying health conditions.

Oh, come on, what are the chances of the spontaneous death of a husband and wife with 'underlying health conditions' at exactly the same time ? 

 

 

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, jvs said:

So who got him out of the water?Did the son do that?Not enough information here.

Just have to wait for more info but it does not seem so straight forward.

Don't worry about the quantity of information, these are just news reports, they're not asking you to investigate.

[Pedrogaz]

2 hours ago, RandolphGB said:

CCTV not working? What a surprise! 
 

 

Funny how often CCTV not working when a 'suicide' happens. I wonder if the CCTV automatically switches off when a suicide is about to happen. My mind keeps returning to the chap who hung himself with a pair of socks from the hinge on his interview room door....yep CCTV mysteriously was turned off.

[Surelynot]

11 minutes ago, Sametboy2019 said:

That maybe but both dying at the same time. 

Dual heart attacks or drowning. Seems unlikely. Feel electrocution could be possible.

Their son....earlier that day.

[thequietman]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

He said that the relatives were not suspicious of the couple's deaths as they had underlying health conditions.

But dying at the same time ........ come on !

[BigFun]

1 hour ago, smedly said:

who had motive if they were murdered

Who had motive for all the others murdered there? Do crazy people need motives? 

[pacovl46]

The fact that relatives aren’t surprised should be very surprising because the chances of both of them dying at the exact same time of underlying health issues is equal zero, and I’d be very surprised and suspicious if someone told me my relatives died at the same time and it wasn’t a car crash or something along the lines! 
 

Essentially it’s one of three options:

 

1. Some sort of accident, like an electrical current

2. Double suicide

3a. Someone murdered them

3b. One murdered the other and then committed suicide afterwards

 

[Dtaw]

Death Island. How hard can it be to cut off all boat departures and round up those sickening mobsters who rule the place and burn them alive. It's the only way....or, continue on as Death Island. 

[scubascuba3]

Presumably they can check easy enough when CCTV stopped working. The problem is of course the police have been paid to not investigate

[PETERTHEEATER]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Pol Col Wirachan Khunchaikaew of Region 5 said after the CSD visited that the actual depth of the water at its deepest point was 3 meters

Quashing the results of an earlier investigation in which it was determined that the depth was 2.2 meters. They will now try to determine who turned the tap on....

[Bkk Brian]

11 minutes ago, PETERTHEEATER said:

Quashing the results of an earlier investigation in which it was determined that the depth was 2.2 meters. They will now try to determine who turned the tap on....

They've all got a dodgy tape measure as according to the Hotel itself its only 2 meters:

 

"To ensure convenience, safety and comfort, beginner and refresher divers conduct skill practice here in our majestically appointed swimming pool, which features a large shallow area for practicing basic skills and a 2 (m) deep section for perfecting buoyancy and swimming skills."

 

https://www.jamahkiridiving.com/facilities.html

[smedly]

37 minutes ago, BigFun said:

Who had motive for all the others murdered there? Do crazy people need motives? 

there is always a motive - some more obvious than others

 

In Thailand I would put these at the top of the list

 

Money 

Face

Jealousy 

[smedly]

nobody knows what happened 

 

I would find it very strange if these rwo adults reached this age only now to discover then can't swim, also highly unlikely they both drowned 

 

Motive - who gains from their death (both of them at the same time)