French man found hanged in Koh Tao with his hands tied behind his back – foul play suspected

[AleG]

So now the man stabbed himself seven times in the chest?

"The fact is that unlike some posters who are speculating as to what may be the actual passage of events leading to a person's demise"

No no, the fact is you and your pals are the ones taking wing on flights of fancy, concocting scenarios out of pure speculation and make believe. Please, don't reply until you can string more than two thoughts together in a sensible manner.

Uhmmm... nope. This guy was found hanged. The clue to that is in the title of the thread. Please try to pay attention son.

This guy here stabbed himself 7 times in the chest recently and apparently the police were ruling it as a suicide:

http://www.thephuketnews.com/russian-tourist-found-dead-in-phuket-hotel-with-7-stab-wounds-47830.php

I do not know the exact details of this young man's situation but it is clearly a very sad, tragic event and I am sure his family and friends must be devastated. I hope he may now rest in peace and offer my condolences to his family and friends.

I am also not offering any speculation as to what happened to this young man. What my post started is that I wholeheartedly disagree with you who would advise that anyone losing a friend or loved one in this country should just sit back and let the investigation into the cause of the death run it's natural course. Don't interfere and don't question anything. The investigation will be handled in a fair and transparent fashion and you will be kept informed of progress at every step of the way. In the event of a court case all evidence presented will be scrutinized and assessed before a verdict is announced, and based on some of your posts, that is the message you are sending and that is just wrong, and a misrepresentation of the way the system works here.

I am simply trying to point out that perhaps at the time of the persons demise, their loved ones would be emotional and not in the correct frame of mind to think of the consequences of their actions, and so it is possible that when presented with a document to sign that confirms they accept the cause of death to be suicide they may think: "Sounds a bit far-fetched, but let's just get him/her home so we can bury him/her and say our farewells...". Then, 2 weeks later a letter arrives from the insurance company saying they are writing to confirm that as stated in Section 2, Paragraph 1 of their loved one's life insurance policy death by suicide is one of the exclusions and therefore the cheque is not in the post... Taking the path of least resistance is probably not a good idea, and if not happy with an investigation, verdict or inquest then take action and question it. And it is certainly not only about insurance policies...

We live in a country where a man can stab himself 7 times in the chest and it be ruled a suicide. A few years ago there was a man in Pattaya who apparently jumped from a tall building and that was also immediately ruled a suicide. Later the autopsy revealed that he had actually died at least an hour before he decided to jump.

"No no, the fact is you and your pals are the ones taking wing on flights of fancy, concocting scenarios out of pure speculation and make believe"

Please clarify who are my pals and highlight any scenario or speculation you are referring to with regards to my comments surrounding this young man's sad demise.

I can string the thoughts together son, but sadly there's no "IQ-Verification" required before allowing a reply to a post on this forum, which is the only reason I find myself confronted with the pseudo-intellectual drivel that you spout.

Do you think adding the derogatory "son" makes you sound more convincing?

You don't even know what you write:

"I am also not offering any speculation"

"Please clarify who are my pals and highlight any scenario or speculation you are referring to with regards to my comments surrounding this young man's sad demise."

I highlighted on your own post what you claim not to be doing.

[sabaitoo]

It’s Official Dimitri Povse’s Death on Koh Tao Deemed a Suicide

http://www.chiangraitimes.com/its-official-dimitri-povses-death-on-koh-tao-deemed-a-suicide.html

There was hand written note on his bed that said, in French, “Iris, I love you. Suicide seems easy but it is actually difficult.”

Somsak added that since Povse’s hands were only loosely tied, he may have inserted his hands into the rope just before committing suicide

What is official..a 3 day old article quoting an article in Coconuts Bangkok..no new information , the definition of loosely tied has been debated for days so has the alleged suicide note...

Still a suspicious departure anyway you try to turn it

[DKUNPUTAF713]

And look from where and who from Death Island were first to post the Chaing Rai article!!!

[JohnThailandJohn]

Its Official Dimitri Povses Death on Koh Tao Deemed a Suicide

http://www.chiangraitimes.com/its-official-dimitri-povses-death-on-koh-tao-deemed-a-suicide.html

There was hand written note on his bed that said, in French, Iris, I love you. Suicide seems easy but it is actually difficult.

Somsak added that since Povses hands were only loosely tied, he may have inserted his hands into the rope just before committing suicide

So drunk as a sailor.

He prepared the noose.

Tied hands in front of him.

Climbed on a chair.

Placed noose around neck.

Then balancing on the chair with the noose around his neck stepped through his hands.

Then proceeded from there.

All over a girl he met a few days ago, that did not pick up the phone.

Yep, that's how it goes in Toontown.

Toontown meaning social media detectives on ThaiVisa?

Nothing to indicate he was drunk, let alone drunk as a sailor. An article that somebody questions if he was drunk makes clear he hasn't a clue. Beyond this one person suggesting he may have been drunk I have missed any other mention of anything to indicate he even drank that day.

The link above indicates he likely slipped his hands through the the rope and not stepped through after tying them from the front.

So, what is left is a guy who appears to hung himself after leaving a note which he indicated suicide was not easy which explains the not uncommon act of both securing his hands and attempting to possibly cut himself before hanging.

I have yet to see anything factual that would indicate this was not a suicide and a while lot to indicate it was. As has been documented and shared throughout this thread, tying hands before hanging oneself is not uncommon and has been explained why people do this ... and in this case his note indicates the same.

Just doesn't seem plausible somebody forged a note, over powered him with the only injury being a small cut on his arm and then lifted and hung him on the front porch without any signs of struggle or fight ... let alone there is not suggested motive for a murder or cover up of it but is motive and evidence of suicide.

Baring the results of the autopsy and toxicology, seems implausible it would be anything but a suicide.

[transam]

Its Official Dimitri Povses Death on Koh Tao Deemed a Suicide

http://www.chiangraitimes.com/its-official-dimitri-povses-death-on-koh-tao-deemed-a-suicide.html

There was hand written note on his bed that said, in French, Iris, I love you. Suicide seems easy but it is actually difficult.

Somsak added that since Povses hands were only loosely tied, he may have inserted his hands into the rope just before committing suicide

So drunk as a sailor.

He prepared the noose.

Tied hands in front of him.

Climbed on a chair.

Placed noose around neck.

Then balancing on the chair with the noose around his neck stepped through his hands.

Then proceeded from there.

All over a girl he met a few days ago, that did not pick up the phone.

Yep, that's how it goes in Toontown.

Toontown meaning social media detectives on ThaiVisa?

Nothing to indicate he was drunk, let alone drunk as a sailor. An article that somebody questions if he was drunk makes clear he hasn't a clue. Beyond this one person suggesting he may have been drunk I have missed any other mention of anything to indicate he even drank that day.

The link above indicates he likely slipped his hands through the the rope and not stepped through after tying them from the front.

So, what is left is a guy who appears to hung himself after leaving a note which he indicated suicide was not easy which explains the not uncommon act of both securing his hands and attempting to possibly cut himself before hanging.

I have yet to see anything factual that would indicate this was not a suicide and a while lot to indicate it was. As has been documented and shared throughout this thread, tying hands before hanging oneself is not uncommon and has been explained why people do this ... and in this case his note indicates the same.

Just doesn't seem plausible somebody forged a note, over powered him with the only injury being a small cut on his arm and then lifted and hung him on the front porch without any signs of struggle or fight ... let alone there is not suggested motive for a murder or cover up of it but is motive and evidence of suicide.

Baring the results of the autopsy and toxicology, seems implausible it would be anything but a suicide.

You would know............................

[sambum]

As I have reached my limit in "blocks of text", in reply to John Thailand John Post No #697 :-

"Nothing to indicate he was drunk, let alone drunk as a sailor. An article that somebody questions if he was drunk makes clear he hasn't a clue. Beyond this one person suggesting he may have been drunk I have missed any other mention of anything to indicate he even drank that day."

From the original article saying that foul play had been ruled out and that the death had been ruled suicide:-

"Witnesses said that the man, who is believed to be named Dimitri, was drinking at a bar on New Year’s eve until around 5am, he then moved on to the Experience Party where he stayed until 11am. His friends then returned to their guesthouse, leaving the man to drink alone. It is believe he committed suicide at around 1pm."

So who do we believe?

[jimmybkk]

Do you think adding the derogatory "son" makes you sound more convincing?

You don't even know what you write:

"I am also not offering any speculation"

"Please clarify who are my pals and highlight any scenario or speculation you are referring to with regards to my comments surrounding this young man's sad demise."

I highlighted on your own post what you claim not to be doing.

Nope - I add "son" at the end because I feel a strange fatherly affection towards you. Weird, huh?

Suppose you go to a bank in another country that you've never been to before and you need to withdraw a bundle of cash from this bank. And suppose that at the window next to yours there's an older guy at the counter with whom you strike up a conversation and he tells you in passing that he's been using this bank for years. If when the teller presents you with your bundle of cash the guy says: "I'd suggest you count it son, they've been known to make mistakes in this bank before..." In your mind that man is speculating that they are short-changing you? Interesting... And how about if he said "Why only last week there was a German fella in here and when he counted the cash it was one thousand short." You would consider that to be speculation also no doubt, or would you then consider that to be "taking wing on flights of fancy" too? Strange, I would consider that he's offering me some good advice based on his experience.

Seems to me you're seeing you glass as half empty son...

In this case, I had just started typing a sentence saying that I would agree that based on what others have posted it appears to be a suicide, but then curiosity got the better of me and I clicked on the link to the Chiang Rai Times photo, and now I am not so sure.

In any event, it's very, very sad...

[AleG]

Do you think adding the derogatory "son" makes you sound more convincing?

You don't even know what you write:

"I am also not offering any speculation"

"Please clarify who are my pals and highlight any scenario or speculation you are referring to with regards to my comments surrounding this young man's sad demise."

I highlighted on your own post what you claim not to be doing.

Nope - I add "son" at the end because I feel a strange fatherly affection towards you. Weird, huh?

Suppose you go to a bank in another country that you've never been to before and you need to withdraw a bundle of cash from this bank. And suppose that at the window next to yours there's an older guy at the counter with whom you strike up a conversation and he tells you in passing that he's been using this bank for years. If when the teller presents you with your bundle of cash the guy says: "I'd suggest you count it son, they've been known to make mistakes in this bank before..." In your mind that man is speculating that they are short-changing you? Interesting... And how about if he said "Why only last week there was a German fella in here and when he counted the cash it was one thousand short." You would consider that to be speculation also no doubt, or would you then consider that to be "taking wing on flights of fancy" too? Strange, I would consider that he's offering me some good advice based on his experience.

Seems to me you're seeing you glass as half empty son...

In this case, I had just started typing a sentence saying that I would agree that based on what others have posted it appears to be a suicide, but then curiosity got the better of me and I clicked on the link to the Chiang Rai Times photo, and now I am not so sure.

In any event, it's very, very sad...

I don't care about your feigned "fatherly feelings", knock it off.

[AGareth2]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

[Islandlife]

Weirdest thing is,as i been trying to just tell my views from island and cut down the wings from gossip here but allways been labeled as apogylist and a troll.

Just read past 5 pages down on this thread and its moustly just boring off topic arguments and moustly gossiping/speculating just for fun.

I must ad one is true what been said about me , i live in Koh tao and have vested interest as form of busines.

And i can share a litle secret Koh tao is at mo busiest we ever seen , i been asking around and moust busines owners here have break all records,boats are full from both ways all the time,only awailable rooms are high end resorts or far awAy from main beach.

As someone mentioned while we discussed these horrid times to our home wich is Koh tao ,murder island as meny of you likes to call it.

He put it well, no one knew where Koh tao is before and now everyone does.

So please continue to make up stories, it has actually worked even bad as it sounds islands benefit.

Ill be heading next to the beach and enjoy the sun,have a nice day everyone.

So what your saying is in your pigeon English is that murder is good for tourism?

No i dont think murders are not good for enything. Hope enough clear English to you.

[DJVillain]

Weirdest thing is,as i been trying to just tell my views from island and cut down the wings from gossip here but allways been labeled as apogylist and a troll.

Just read past 5 pages down on this thread and its moustly just boring off topic arguments and moustly gossiping/speculating just for fun.

I must ad one is true what been said about me , i live in Koh tao and have vested interest as form of busines.

And i can share a litle secret Koh tao is at mo busiest we ever seen , i been asking around and moust busines owners here have break all records,boats are full from both ways all the time,only awailable rooms are high end resorts or far awAy from main beach.

As someone mentioned while we discussed these horrid times to our home wich is Koh tao ,murder island as meny of you likes to call it.

He put it well, no one knew where Koh tao is before and now everyone does.

So please continue to make up stories, it has actually worked even bad as it sounds islands benefit.

Ill be heading next to the beach and enjoy the sun,have a nice day everyone.

So what your saying is in your pigeon English is that murder is good for tourism?

No i dont think murders are not good for enything. Hope enough clear English to you.

So... you think murders are good for Enything...

Who is this sicko Enything and what makes murders good for him?!?

[AleG]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

From the opening article: "Wounds were discovered around the man’s neck"

[greenchair]

All I want to know is

Was he the frenchman in protective custody? ??

[sambum]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

There was no bruising on the neck - wounds, yes. The absence of bruising on the neck would indicate that he was dead before he was hanged.

[AleG]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

There was no bruising on the neck - wounds, yes. The absence of bruising on the neck would indicate that he was dead before he was hanged.

Besides the speculation from "respectable" guy who was not present at the scene or conducted a postmortem, what do you base your claim that there was no bruising on the neck from?

[sambum]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

There was no bruising on the neck - wounds, yes. The absence of bruising on the neck would indicate that he was dead before he was hanged.

Besides the speculation from "respectable" guy who was not present at the scene or conducted a postmortem, what do you base your claim that there was no bruising on the neck from?

You know my answer to that, and you have already been warned by the moderators, so lay off, or I will be taking things a step further.

[CharlieH]

Off topic posts removed

[loonodingle]

Weirdest thing is,as i been trying to just tell my views from island and cut down the wings from gossip here but allways been labeled as apogylist and a troll.

Just read past 5 pages down on this thread and its moustly just boring off topic arguments and moustly gossiping/speculating just for fun.

I must ad one is true what been said about me , i live in Koh tao and have vested interest as form of busines.

And i can share a litle secret Koh tao is at mo busiest we ever seen , i been asking around and moust busines owners here have break all records,boats are full from both ways all the time,only awailable rooms are high end resorts or far awAy from main beach.

As someone mentioned while we discussed these horrid times to our home wich is Koh tao ,murder island as meny of you likes to call it.

He put it well, no one knew where Koh tao is before and now everyone does.

So please continue to make up stories, it has actually worked even bad as it sounds islands benefit.

Ill be heading next to the beach and enjoy the sun,have a nice day everyone.

So what your saying is in your pigeon English is that murder is good for tourism?

No i dont think murders are not good for enything. Hope enough clear English to you.

A very disturbing comment from island life Almost revelling in it.

Hey Guys we are doing great now....!!!

This isn't about how great the Island is doing it is about some poor woman raped and murdered and a man murdered as well..

[Islandlife]

Yes , that is terrible indeed and no one of us will ever here forgot that horrible act of violence.

My comment was only aimed to all death island and boycot koh tao posters who here just commenting for laughts .

I was very worried how all Bs written here and newspaper about all this affects our every day life here as shure u understand we all have to still go work,live here and moove on eventually.

Thats how life goes.

[007cableguy]

Yes , that is terrible indeed and no one of us will ever here forgot that horrible act of violence.

My comment was only aimed to all death island and boycot koh tao posters who here just commenting for laughts .

I was very worried how all Bs written here and newspaper about all this affects our every day life here as shure u understand we all have to still go work,live here and moove on eventually.

Thats how life goes.

The only reason I have for people to avoid that island is I honestly believe that they have the wrong people in custody and if I've worked it out right their are some murders roaming around ! ,Whilst thats my belief I won't advise any friends or family to go there !. If that affects someone's business so be it!

[petercool]

A baiting post removed

[AGareth2]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

There was no bruising on the neck - wounds, yes. The absence of bruising on the neck would indicate that he was dead before he was hanged.

that is how I interpreted the findings

meaning he was probably murdered

[mrtoad]

Yes , that is terrible indeed and no one of us will ever here forgot that horrible act of violence.

My comment was only aimed to all death island and boycot koh tao posters who here just commenting for laughts .

I was very worried how all Bs written here and newspaper about all this affects our every day life here as shure u understand we all have to still go work,live here and moove on eventually.

Thats how life goes.

Vile.

Death Island is a mafia led, vermin infested rock in the sea.

[sambum]

In reply to AleG post no #717:-

Read my previous post again. I have told you already the info on which I base my claim, but you keep asking the same question. A discussion forum is for exactly that - not a forum for the same question to be asked and answered by the same posters time and time again. I consider your recent comments a waste of space, and am getting bored by your baiting, harassment and trolling, so there's another complaint on the way to the Moderators.

[metisdead]

A bickering and baiting session has been removed.

Please stay on the topic of the thread. That means addressing the issues presented in the post, not in making comments to or about other posters. Doing so is off-topic and your post will be removed and you could face a suspension. Digging through other member's posts and bringing them up on the forum can be considered stalking and it is against the forum rules.

You have every right to express your opinion about the topic. You may disagree, but it must be done in a civil manner.

[TSF]

Yes , that is terrible indeed and no one of us will ever here forgot that horrible act of violence.

My comment was only aimed to all death island and boycot koh tao posters who here just commenting for laughts .

I was very worried how all Bs written here and newspaper about all this affects our every day life here as shure u understand we all have to still go work,live here and moove on eventually.

Thats how life goes.

The only reason I have for people to avoid that island is I honestly believe that they have the wrong people in custody and if I've worked it out right their are some murders roaming around ! ,Whilst thats my belief I won't advise any friends or family to go there !. If that affects someone's business so be it!

I no longer advise any friends or family to go to Thailand. I tell them if you want temples/ruins/ancient culture go Cambodia. If you want beaches/islands/diving go PIs. If you want an overall interesting Asian experience go Vietnam.

[45slap]

As I have reached my limit in "blocks of text", in reply to John Thailand John Post No #697 :-

"Nothing to indicate he was drunk, let alone drunk as a sailor. An article that somebody questions if he was drunk makes clear he hasn't a clue. Beyond this one person suggesting he may have been drunk I have missed any other mention of anything to indicate he even drank that day."

From the original article saying that foul play had been ruled out and that the death had been ruled suicide:-

"Witnesses said that the man, who is believed to be named Dimitri, was drinking at a bar on New Year’s eve until around 5am, he then moved on to the Experience Party where he stayed until 11am. His friends then returned to their guesthouse, leaving the man to drink alone. It is believe he committed suicide at around 1pm."

So who do we believe?

That's such a load of rubbish. Who would believe someone would tie their hands behind their back and swing. Oh, let me guess, so he cannot change his mind once he swings. Horse manure. Tying your hands behind your back is possible, but not if one is so intoxicated. Give me f...ing break.

[sambum]

As I have reached my limit in "blocks of text", in reply to John Thailand John Post No #697 :-

"Nothing to indicate he was drunk, let alone drunk as a sailor. An article that somebody questions if he was drunk makes clear he hasn't a clue. Beyond this one person suggesting he may have been drunk I have missed any other mention of anything to indicate he even drank that day."

From the original article saying that foul play had been ruled out and that the death had been ruled suicide:-

"Witnesses said that the man, who is believed to be named Dimitri, was drinking at a bar on New Year’s eve until around 5am, he then moved on to the Experience Party where he stayed until 11am. His friends then returned to their guesthouse, leaving the man to drink alone. It is believe he committed suicide at around 1pm."

So who do we believe?

That's such a load of rubbish. Who would believe someone would tie their hands behind their back and swing. Oh, let me guess, so he cannot change his mind once he swings. Horse manure. Tying your hands behind your back is possible, but not if one is so intoxicated. Give me f...ing break.

I think you are misunderstanding my post! I was asking if we believe John Thailand John, who says that he doesnt think that the victim had even had a drink that day (1st paragraph) or:-

The excerpt from the original TV article where witnesses stated that he had been drinking virtually all that day (and night)

So who do you believe?

[DJVillain]

Yes , that is terrible indeed and no one of us will ever here forgot that horrible act of violence.

My comment was only aimed to all death island and boycot koh tao posters who here just commenting for laughts .

I was very worried how all Bs written here and newspaper about all this affects our every day life here as shure u understand we all have to still go work,live here and moove on eventually.

Thats how life goes.

yeah, commenting 'for laughs'...

Not because we have principles or anything like that

[BritTim]

Am I reading this right?

there was no bruising on the neck?

There was no bruising on the neck - wounds, yes. The absence of bruising on the neck would indicate that he was dead before he was hanged.

One can only tell so much from photos of the scene. That said, my own observations, and discussion with others much more qualified, leads to the following impressions:

1. The neck contained a ligature mark that was consistent with death by hanging using the cord around the neck when the body was found.
2. The neck does not appear to be broken, and the knot was not positioned optimally for venous congestion to minimize the time until lack of consciousness. It seems he died purely of asphyxiation, and it can be assumed that, under normal circumstances, he will have been conscious for quite a while.
3. There were few signs that the man struggled during hanging. Usually, regardless of the desire to commit suicide, or hands being secured, the survival instinct will kick in and strenuous efforts made to escape. This could imply that he was unconscious when the hanging began.
4. There are difficulties figuring out how he would have managed to hang himself from the only available jumping off point (the verandah rail) with his hands tied behind his back. It seems we would have needed to tie the hands when the noose was already around his neck. Even then, a very good sense of balance would be needed. Unfortunately, available photos do not show the knots clearly, and we cannot tell if they are consistent with being tied without the assistance of the teeth.

Overall, the gut instinct I have, and of experienced homicide detectives, is that unassisted suicide is possible but contraindicated. That is as much as one could say without toxicology reports, and detailed investigation.