Koh Tao deaths and the mystery around them

[frank83628]

1 hour ago, kwilco said:

This shows a basic misunderstanding of the situation on  manyThai islands. THe island is likely dominated by a "family of influence". The murder rate by population actually is higher than Glasgow.

with a population roughly 4-8k residents, 1/2 million tourists per year, and 3 murders to date  your maths might be lacking somewhat be slightly out.....the rest are purely fantasy claims by 2 people, neither of which are within 3000kms of Tao..or Thailand for that matter.

[Mac Mickmanus]

Just now, frank83628 said:

with a population roughly 4-8k residents, 1/2 million tourists per year, and 3 murders to date  your maths might be lacking somewhat be slightly out.....the rest are purely fantasy claims by 2 people, neither of which are within 3000kms of Tao..or Thailand for that matter.

The point is that all the numerous other suspicions deaths have been put down as natural causes and they haven't been classified as murders .

   Its been suggested that the real murderers haven't been caught and are still roaming the island murdering at will 

[frank83628]

14 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

The point is that all the numerous other suspicions deaths have been put down as natural causes and they haven't been classified as murders .

   Its been suggested that the real murderers haven't been caught and are still roaming the island murdering at will 

you say ' all the numerous suspicious deaths' where did your information come from that they. were suspicious? su buchanan and Ian Yarwood thats who!!, they are solely responsible for these BS stories about tao, and unfortunately with todays copy & past reporting they have been spread far & wide.
saying a death is suspicious without offering any actual evidence doesnt make it fact!
 

[kwilco]

22 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

with a population roughly 4-8k residents, 1/2 million tourists per year, and 3 murders to date  your maths might be lacking somewhat be slightly out.....the rest are purely fantasy claims by 2 people, neither of which are within 3000kms of Tao..or Thailand for that matter.

No your figures are wrong - the population of the island is never that high on a monthly basis for a stat and there have been many more deaths than that.

[Mac Mickmanus]

On 2/13/2023 at 2:08 AM, frank83628 said:

all stirred up by you & su Buchanan....!
Ben Harringtons own brother has said it was an accident as he knew ben had been drinking. 
you have an unhealthy obsession with `Tao.... a place you've never been to!

Ben Harringtons Mother has been petitioning the U.K Government to investigate Ben Harringtons death in Thailand , because she doesn't believe the Thai report of what happened about how he died 

 

https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/ben-harrington-thailand-death-reigate-14026764

 

 

The Reigate mother of a British man who died in mysterious circumstances in Thailand in 2012 is petitioning the UK government to demand full investigations into the deaths of Britons in the country.

Ben Harrington, 32, died on the island of Koh Tao in 2012 and his mother Pat Harrington did not accept the explanation by Thai police that he died after his motorbike crashed into an electricity pylon.

 

[frank83628]

19 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

Ben Harringtons Mother has been petitioning the U.K Government to investigate Ben Harringtons death in Thailand , because she doesn't believe the Thai report of what happened about how he died 

 

https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/ben-harrington-thailand-death-reigate-14026764

 

 

The Reigate mother of a British man who died in mysterious circumstances in Thailand in 2012 is petitioning the UK government to demand full investigations into the deaths of Britons in the country.

Ben Harrington, 32, died on the island of Koh Tao in 2012 and his mother Pat Harrington did not accept the explanation by Thai police that he died after his motorbike crashed into an electricity pylon.

 

but his brother that was with him does!, he clearly stated that on the last documentary that he believes it was a tragic accident (as does everyone else he was with earlier), he even stated he didn't wear a watch which is what su buchanan has based her murder claims on. why his mother takes the word of a wrinkled ol' hag over her son is beyond me. 
do you know Sus suspicious death claim stems from a road side assumption as to cause of death by the police on the scene to the actual autopsy report, however that report states he died of 'ruptured aorta'.
you can google the causes if you like...vehicle accidents is one on the list.. but she claims 'mugging by a motorcycle gang'!!
p.s, i was drinking in the same bar as ben earlier that night, i left just before they got on the shots. 

[kwilco]

At least eleven European tourists have died or disappeared there since 2014

[Mac Mickmanus]

8 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

but his brother that was with him does!, he clearly stated that on the last documentary that he believes it was a tragic accident (as does everyone else he was with earlier), he even stated he didn't wear a watch which is what su buchanan has based her murder claims on. why his mother takes the word of a wrinkled ol' hag over her son is beyond me. 
do you know Sus suspicious death claim stems from a road side assumption as to cause of death by the police on the scene to the actual autopsy report, however that report states he died of 'ruptured aorta'.
you can google the causes if you like...vehicle accidents is one on the list.. but she claims 'mugging by a motorcycle gang'!!
p.s, i was drinking in the same bar as ben earlier that night, i left just before they got on the shots. 

Could you provide a link to that , as nothing comes up in a websearch 

[kwilco]

1 hour ago, frank83628 said:

with a population roughly 4-8k residents, 1/2 million tourists per year, and 3 murders to date  your maths might be lacking somewhat be slightly out.....the rest are purely fantasy claims by 2 people, neither of which are within 3000kms of Tao..or Thailand for that matter.

murders in Glasgow in the past 2 years 

Population of Glasgow is about 600.000

Has Europe’s second highest murder rate..... Glasgow (3.3 per 100,000),

Population of Koh Tao 2100 + 3000 workers + about 7500 tourists on any one day.

Suspicious Deaths in the last 3 years about 6

So it could exceed Glasgow’s rate tenfold.

If you are unaware of the problems on Koh Tao - which even the Thai authorities have alluded to - take a look at these web sites......

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2016/04/20/murder-in-paradise-a-chilling-documentary-about-the-koh-tao-murd/

http://thailandjustice.com/koh-tao-suspicious-crimes-deaths/

[frank83628]

26 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

Could you provide a link to that , as nothing comes up in a websearch 

that came from Su directly when i questioned as to why she said Bens death was suspicious, of course no proof was given, but thats the same when ever you question either her or Ian. they have no proof, just omit facts to further their 'suspicious death' claims' which people like yourself believe.

 

[frank83628]

28 minutes ago, kwilco said:

murders in Glasgow in the past 2 years 

Population of Glasgow is about 600.000

Has Europe’s second highest murder rate..... Glasgow (3.3 per 100,000),

Population of Koh Tao 2100 + 3000 workers + about 7500 tourists on any one day.

Suspicious Deaths in the last 3 years about 6

So it could exceed Glasgow’s rate tenfold.

If you are unaware of the problems on Koh Tao - which even the Thai authorities have alluded to - take a look at these web sites......

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2016/04/20/murder-in-paradise-a-chilling-documentary-about-the-koh-tao-murd/

http://thailandjustice.com/koh-tao-suspicious-crimes-deaths/

what 6 are they? and please provide some proof, not just repeating posts which are hearsay at best.

 

[Mac Mickmanus]

4 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

that came from Su directly when i questioned as to why she said Bens death was suspicious, of course no proof was given, but thats the same when ever you question either her or Ian. they have no proof, just omit facts to further their 'suspicious death' claims' which people like yourself believe.

 

Could you provide  link to that last documentary where Bens Brother made the statement in question ?

[frank83628]

19 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

Could you provide  link to that last documentary where Bens Brother made the statement in question ?

i'm blocked from Buchanans page now as she didn't like facts getting in the way of her lies, but if i come across it again i will post it. from memory it was posted by Su miller (Davids mother)

[kwilco]

44 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

what 6 are they? and please provide some proof, not just repeating posts which are hearsay at best.

 

like everyone without and argument you have now resorted to sealioning - just give up!

 

here's a list  - not comprehensive of Khao Tao deaths ...

 

an Jacobs 2000;

Virat Asavachin (Mr Ban) 2002;

Hiroshi 2002;

Yoshie Sazawa (Sharlyn) 2004;

Ben Harrington 2012;

Anthony Cardullo 2013 (USA);

Nick Pearson 2014;

Hannah Witheridge 2014;

David Miller 2014;

Hanspeter Suter 2014;

Silje Mathisen 2014;

Dimitri Povse 2015;

Christina Annesley 2015;

Luke Miller 2016;

Shelley Bot 2017;

Valentina Novozhenova 2017;

Elise Dallemagne 2017;

Bernd Grotsch 2017;

Rocio Gomez;

Samyak Choudhary; and

A Thai/Indian couple circa June 2021.

 

You are being very amateurish - you obviously haven't researched this topic at all and have very limited knowledge of it yet you are quite happy to randomly gainsay anything people who have researched say about it....so you have now resorting to sealioning!

 

[frank83628]

1 hour ago, kwilco said:

At least eleven European tourists have died or disappeared there since 2014

wow.... 9 years....how many tourists per year...you didn't really think that through did you!!
apart from the Russian girl who has disappeared?
you know Valentinas diary was translated by a fellow Russian diver on the Island right? and that what was written confirmed the most logical scenario? or perhaps Su & Ian failed to print that, or perhaps they didn't know as they have zero first hand information.

i think more than 1 died over Christmas period.... i'm surprised there aren't a lot more with the recklessness that goes on. 
just curious, do you count the deaths in Pattaya? pretty sure there were 4 murders in a month not long back... that's ok though i guess.

[frank83628]

1 minute ago, kwilco said:

like everyone without and argument you have now resorted to sealioning - just give up!

ah, so you cant provide any proof but i'm the troll...ok then.

[kwilco]

you just can't stop yourself, can you?

[Mac Mickmanus]

54 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

wow.... 9 years....how many tourists per year...you didn't really think that through did you!!
apart from the Russian girl who has disappeared?
you know Valentinas diary was translated by a fellow Russian diver on the Island right? and that what was written confirmed the most logical scenario? or perhaps Su & Ian failed to print that, or perhaps they didn't know as they have zero first hand information.

i think more than 1 died over Christmas period.... i'm surprised there aren't a lot more with the recklessness that goes on. 
just curious, do you count the deaths in Pattaya? pretty sure there were 4 murders in a month not long back... that's ok though i guess.

You know very well that  it isn't the amount of murders 

Its the fact that the murderers aren't sought and prosecuted.

Tourists get murdered on Kao Tao and its all covered up and the killers not bought to justice or stopped  from killing more tourists . 

 

[Slip]

11 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

You know very well that  it isn't the amount of murders 

Its the fact that the murderers aren't sought and prosecuted.

Tourists get murdered on Kao Tao and its all covered up and the killers not bought to justice or stopped  from killing more tourists . 

 

Well said Mac.  Not to mention that the death rate has nothing to do with visitors per year but average population to even arrive at figures on which to comment.  Also not to mention frank has been on here doing the same thing as he does now since the time of the gruesome beach ripper incident.

[frank83628]

3 hours ago, kwilco said:

like everyone without and argument you have now resorted to sealioning - just give up!

 

here's a list  - not comprehensive of Khao Tao deaths ...

 

an Jacobs 2000; hearsay, no facts

Virat Asavachin (Mr Ban) 2002; shot

Hiroshi 2002; hearsay, no facts

Yoshie Sazawa (Sharlyn) 2004; hearsay no facts

Ben Harrington 2012; bike accident

Anthony Cardullo 2013 (USA);  OD 

Nick Pearson 2014; drunk accident

Hannah Witheridge 2014; murdered

David Miller 2014; murdered

Hanspeter Suter 2014; heart attack

Silje Mathisen 2014; dive accident

Dimitri Povse 2015; suicide

Christina Annesley 2015; overdose

Luke Miller 2016; dunno

Shelley Bot 2017; dive accident

Valentina Novozhenova 2017; free diving accident

Elise Dallemagne 2017; weird, ran away form Phangan, nothing followed up about that

Bernd Grotsch 2017; snake bite

Rocio Gomez; dive accident

Samyak Choudhary; 

A Thai/Indian couple circa June 2021. drowned one try to save the other. sever health issues.

and what, these are all suspicious because Ian yarwood says so?
diving accident, bike accident, snake bite, Overdose, heart attack...whats suspicious about them...

 

You are being very amateurish - you obviously haven't researched this topic at all and have very limited knowledge of it yet you are quite happy to randomly gainsay anything people who have researched say about it....so you have now resorting to sealioning! 

i live on Tao, i personally knew 4 of the people that have died and know 100% that there was nothing suspicious about their deaths.
perhaps you should pull you head out your a**e and stop vbeing so gullible and making yourself look foolsih

 

a list made by whom? Ian Yarwood, a real estarte agent form Perth, WA ,that has never stepped foot on Tao ,who has no first hand information whatsoever. and you believe him, where are you, have you ever been to tao, know anything about the subject you seem so sure about? 

[frank83628]

2 hours ago, Slip said:

Well said Mac.  Not to mention that the death rate has nothing to do with visitors per year but average population to even arrive at figures on which to comment.  Also not to mention frank has been on here doing the same thing as he does now since the time of the gruesome beach ripper incident.

you can move the goalposts how ever you want, it doesnt change the fact that these 'suspicious death' claims are total BS. but if you are that gullible thats your fault. your comment highlights this.

 

[kwilco]

The most recent death was a 48 year old diving instructor, one would have thought reasonably fit He is the fifth instructor to have died on the island in recent years. 

 

The police say he died of natural causes, but friends have raised concerns over the number of unexplained deaths. Maybe just “conspiracy theory” – but the fact remains that his death has re-wakened the concerns of many over the reputation of this benighted island.

 

Deaths on the island have a long history.

 

Koh Tao was a political penal colony from 1933 until 1947, it now likes to exist as far as possible from any mainland oversight.

Koh Tao island is only 7 km in length and 3 km in width and has a total area of approximately 21 square km.

 

The modern history of Koh Tao is pretty short - in the 1980s, backpackers and scuba divers began to visit Ko Tao and it quickly became a popular destination. In the 1990s the island became known for diving.

 

Now, Koh Tao gets just over half a million visitors a year. The Thai population is about 2500 and the foreign long term resident number about 2000. These figures give you some idea of the huge amount of money flooding into this tiny island, handled by just a small number of people on the island. There are bout 3 to 5000 Burmese labourers on the island whose status is questionable and exploitation is certain. They rely on the police to remain there and allegedly pay about 500 bah per month for the privilege.

On average there were about 30,000 to 60,000 visitors on the island per month. Last year post Covid it was around 30,000.

 

Originally many of the Thai people were “squatters”[1] as the islands aren’t definitively surveyed  for property ownership. Squatting in Thailand was permissible possession can occur after ten years of continuous occupation. (e.g. - In 2015, the capital Bangkok had over 2 million squatters, out of a population of around 10 million).

 

A large percentage of the land in Thailand is not titled or even accurately surveyed. This is because complete surveys and comprehensive titling procedures have never been carried out or completed…..

 

So, those in control on the island are the owners of the booming tourist businesses that were developed on land originally obtained, via “squatting” or “selectoring” i.e. government concessions, originally for growing coconuts…and much of which doesn’t have full proof of ownership. (e.g. “chanote”)

 

Back in 2014  Jonathan Head and other journalists commented that this island in particular was a place where feuding was common and vicious. Often involving fire arms. It is very easy to get a firearms permit in Thailand

 

The island has long had a reputation for drugs; marijuana is commonplace and was openly sold in some bars – even pre-rolled joints.

 Ya-ba was also used especially by locals. You could also buy magic mushrooms etc.

 

If you are to believe the “family” history of Koh Tao then it would be logical to assume that locals on the island don’t want any disruption to their trade either the legal or “shady” aspects of it and might have the full support of the local enforcement agencies. This means a code of silence prevails in the small community of those local to the island.

 

Foreigners on the island involved in the tourist industry rely on the local authorities for visas and work permits so they too are unlikely to cause ripples. In fact as work permits are location specific it would be more or less impossible to work as a dive instructor in several places.

 

The police investigation trial were roundly criticised by international media, human rights organisations, and legal experts. In December 2015, two Burmese men were convicted of the murder and sentenced to death. Attempts to appeal the sentence failed, but it was commuted to life by the King.

 

The local authorities were concerned the murders might affect tourism to the island, with arrivals dropping in the months following the murders. In the long term up until Covid these fears proved unfounded.

 

The prime minister General Prayuth, who was Junta chief at the time, surprised many by suggesting that the blame, at some level, was with attractive victims. “Will [tourists] survive in Thailand if they dress in bikinis?” He added that they would if “they are not beautiful.”

 

Here’s a (partial) list of deaths on the island. They may not be murders but they illustrate a lack of public safety awareness and a consistent policy by the authorities and their allies to sweep matters under the carpet and keep up the image of “nothing to see here” resulting in a lack of normal procedural processes in the event of a death.

Many of the families of the deceased are still unhappy with the way their relatives’ deaths were handled by the police – lack of procedure and transparency……

 

Jan 2000 - Ian Jacobs  - family still not happy with inconsistencies in the police account. Body was found in a "well"

 

2002 – Viret Asaiachin shot dead in broad daylight – an organised crime like assassination.

 

Japanese tourist died after drinking game

 

2012 - Ben Harrington,32, died when he crashed during a moped ride

 

2013 - Tony Cordullo - owner of the Lotus bar

 

January 1, 2014 - Nick Pearson, 25, was found floating in an island bay, at the foot of a 50ft drop following a night out with his family on New Year's Eve. His body was found at the beach at the Hillside Resort on Koh Tao.

 

 

2014 - Hannah Witheridge and David Miller – the “Koh Tao Murders”.

 

November 2014 - Swiss tourist Hans Peter Suter, 44,

 

December 2014 – Silje Mathisen – scuba / boating incident.

 

January 1, 2015- Frenchman, Dimitri Povse, 29, was found hanging from the beam of a rented house on. Although both of his hands were tied behind the back

 

Jan 21, 2015 - British woman, Christina Annesley, 23, was found in a room at the In Touch Resort on.

 

February 16, 2015, - Russian tourist Valentina Novozhyonova, 23, vanished from her hostel on Koh Tao.

 

January 6, 2016 - British Bricklayer Luke Miller, 26, was found at the bottom of a swimming pool at the Sunset Bar at Sairee Beach on. His family accused the Thai police of a cover-up.

 

16 February 2017 - Canadian mother of 3, Shelly Bot was struck and killed by a Koh Tao water taxi taking a short cut on. Island locals falsely claimed that she was snorkelling in a boat lane. Her partner was also struck and injured.

 

April 27, 2017 - Belgian backpacker Elise Dallemagne, 30, was found hanging from a tree.

 

 

June 2018 - German Bernd Grotsch's body was found at his home deep in the jungle in the Mae Haad part of Koh Tao. He had recently returned to the island after building up a motorbike rental business.

 

October 9, 2018 - Alexandr Bucspun, 33, from Moldova, was found dead in the sea off Had Sai Ree on Koh Tao on Tuesday,.

 

17/12/2018  - Rocio Leticia Gomez 39 from Argentina was lost at sea, rescued but died 4 days later. Another tragedy kept quiet!!

 

June 2019 – Samyak Choudhray – drowned whilst snorkelling

 

In 2020 a tourist was attacked with a knife by a well known character ob the island

 

June 2021 – A married couple - .A millionaire hotel tycoon and his wife have been found dead in a luxury resort on Koh Tao Rakeshwar Sachathamakul and  wife, Anshoo

 

 

2023

Nicholas Giblin passed away in his sleep. This is probably true,  but his death has highlighted the problem of Koh Tao, which now has a reputation and the local police do nothing to alleviate this. Many of the families of those who died are not happy with the circumstances or explanations of their relatives deaths.

 

Every death of a foreigner on Koh Tao will be treated with a certain amount of suspicion misgiving, , reservation,  scepticism,  distrust. and this will rumble on unless there is a concerted effort by the authorities to establish transparency and honesty in the proceedings.

 

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squatting_in_Thailand#:~:text=The squatters settlements were of,land owned by the Crown.

[save the frogs]

7 hours ago, kwilco said:

The most recent death was a 48 year old diving instructor, one would have thought reasonably fit He is the fifth instructor to have died on the island in recent years. 

diving instructors ...

might some of these deaths be accidents? 

 

https://scubadiverlife.com/health-issues-for-dive-instructors/

humans are not made to breathe underwater, so every time a diver descends, he is completely dependent upon his equipment, skills and emergency training to ensure that he surfaces safely.

 

[NanLaew]

16 hours ago, frank83628 said:

but his brother that was with him does!, he clearly stated that on the last documentary that he believes it was a tragic accident (as does everyone else he was with earlier), he even stated he didn't wear a watch which is what su buchanan has based her murder claims on. why his mother takes the word of a wrinkled ol' hag over her son is beyond me. 
do you know Sus suspicious death claim stems from a road side assumption as to cause of death by the police on the scene to the actual autopsy report, however that report states he died of 'ruptured aorta'.
you can google the causes if you like...vehicle accidents is one on the list.. but she claims 'mugging by a motorcycle gang'!!
p.s, i was drinking in the same bar as ben earlier that night, i left just before they got on the shots. 

It's both impolite and inappropriate to criticize the beliefs of a mother in mourning for her son. But maybe that's just me.

 

What possible value do you see in your rather obscure p.s, comment? Beyond an "I was (almost) there" claim I mean?

[kwilco]

1 hour ago, save the frogs said:

diving instructors ...

might some of these deaths be accidents? 

 

https://scubadiverlife.com/health-issues-for-dive-instructors/

humans are not made to breathe underwater, so every time a diver descends, he is completely dependent upon his equipment, skills and emergency training to ensure that he surfaces safely.

 

I think I've covered that....the issue is how deaths are handled on the island. See comments on how the authorities operate.... the fact is all you can do is speculate.

[frank83628]

21 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

It's both impolite and inappropriate to criticize the beliefs of a mother in mourning for her son. But maybe that's just me.

 

What possible value do you see in your rather obscure p.s, comment? Beyond an "I was (almost) there" claim I mean?

do you think it's impolite and inappropriate to verbally attack the mother of David Miller because your opinion differs from hers?  because thats what Su Buchanan & ian Yarwood do regularly when she posts on threads they're both on!

it means that i know Ben was Hammered when he drove, after people taking his keys away at first because he was too drunk, there was never any 'suspicion' regarding his death until Su Buchanan got her claws into Mrs Harrington. i feel sorry that she has been preyed on by Su for her own personal agenda. 
 



 

[Rimmer]

Some troll / flames and replies have been removed

[frank83628]

30 minutes ago, kwilco said:

I think I've covered that....the issue is how deaths are handled on the island. See comments on how the authorities operate.... the fact is all you can do is speculate.

things are handled accordingly, they just don't need to inform barstool `Jo Public with information that is not anyone but the families business.
did you know Neils body was sent to Surat for an Autopsy, requested by the police? na, didnt think so, you just read a few lines of a sensationalised story form someone in a different continent that doesn't have any actual knowledge of Koh Tao.

[NanLaew]

38 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

do you think it's impolite and inappropriate to verbally attack the mother of David Miller because your opinion differs from hers?  because thats what Su Buchanan & ian Yarwood do regularly when she posts on threads they're both on!

it means that i know Ben was Hammered when he drove, after people taking his keys away at first because he was too drunk, there was never any 'suspicion' regarding his death until Su Buchanan got her claws into Mrs Harrington. i feel sorry that she has been preyed on by Su for her own personal agenda. 

 

Sorry frank, but you are basing your views on assumptions and anecdotal evidence, same as that this nemesis of yours allegedly does.

 

Either way, that does appear to be your chosen battle so carry on shining your light as brightly as you can.

[frank83628]

4 hours ago, NanLaew said:

Sorry frank, but you are basing your views on assumptions and anecdotal evidence, same as that this nemesis of yours allegedly does.

 

Either way, that does appear to be your chosen battle so carry on shining your light as brightly as you can.

no, basing them on living on Tao for many years.