French man found dead in Koh Tao – incident being treated as suicide not homicide

[Johnny S]

Suicide no doubt - the brave people of Koh Tao (or any thai) "would never do this" ...

Sink that disgusting Island in the ocean

[Baerboxer]

How does one tie string around their hands behind their back?

Contortionist.

[stumac85]

NSFW but this piece of research is relevant: http://www.academia.edu/903627/Precautions_Taken_to_Avoid_Abandoning_the_Act_of_Hanging_and_Reducing_Pain_in_Suicidal_Hanging_Cases

[Carrerakiss]

Police and physicians carried out an autopsy and believe the cause of death was asphyxiation, the case is being treated as a suicide and not as a homicide. The mans body has been taken to Koh Tao temple.

Why would they return the mans body to KT?

I would assume they did not perform the autopsy on the island.

Quite. It's also strange that the police performed the autopsy in conjunction with physicians. What did they do? Pass the scalpel?

[Baerboxer]

So, after a heavy night ( and a good part of the day) drinking, a person writes a suicide note using complete sentences, stands on a ledge, slips his head into a noose, ties his hands tightly together, and then kills himself.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. My B.S. meter just exploded.

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.

All sounds reasonable - even wrote the suicide note in English to make it easier for the BiB, even though drunk, depressed to the point of suicidal despair and not a native English speaker, he still produced a suicide note in apparent perfect English.

You can't fool the BiB - they know a suicide when convenient they see one.

Just like the poor Lao girl who through herself off a balcony ledge when her pregnant work colleagues wife came home early and discovered them together. Obvious suicide.

[Loles]

So, if the Police has talked about suicide when 2 beheaded bodies were found in the sea water close to Pattaya ...

This case must to be suicide also.

Dimitri bounded his hands in his back-side, took a paper and wrote letter to his love, than lashed a rope to the ceiling of balcony and killed himself, but also cut himself by his neck too but only a few times ...

Suicide, a clear suicide.

Don't doubt at all!

BUT, allegedly Dimitri wanted to commit suicide 2 times before, but they didn't find him at home ...

Edited January 5, 2015 by Loles

[chrisinth]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

.

Is Thailand the world's number one holiday suicide destination?

If they have a username on this forum and reads some of these contributions, then yes, most likely....................

[xerostar]

Sure it was suicide ! - "assisted suicide" is suicide isn't it ? (at least in the BIB manual)

and asphyxiation could have been prior to the "hanging"

Perhaps the assistant wrote the suicide note ?

He was probably referring to the difficulty of the procedure in "assisting".

RIP

[lil fluffy clouds]

http://www.academia.edu/903627/Precautions_Taken_to_Avoid_Abandoning_the_Act_of_Hanging_and_Reducing_Pain_in_Suicidal_Hanging_Cases

This is quite interesting, it seems that people do elect to tie their hands before this method of suicide, bit graphic this link so if you don't want to look at dead bodies best not use it.

NO NOOOO this cant be.. Thaivisa detectives say its impossible.

Clearly possible indeed...doesn't "automatically" rule out all other possibilities...

[madmitch]

I wonder, who wrote the suicide note?

RIP Dimitri.

My thoughts too.

Typical Thai police.

TOO HARD BASKET.

Suicide less paper work.

I hope that the note was written in French.

Of course, written in French and translated into Thai by the island's official translator, Mr Pancake Man.

[lil fluffy clouds]

The police statement did not even identify the guy.

Surprised they gave it enough time to identify the gender...

[sabaitoo]

NSFW but this piece of research is relevant: http://www.academia.edu/903627/Precautions_Taken_to_Avoid_Abandoning_the_Act_of_Hanging_and_Reducing_Pain_in_Suicidal_Hanging_Cases

Well read it carefully and you will notice that there is only 2 cases in the study , 1 case where the hand were found tied "limply" behind the victims back and 1 case where it was tied on the waist/side with clothesline figure 3 case 5.

None of the cases in the study resembles the bindings from Koh Tao, not saying it could not be a suicide, but a decent investigation should have been made before it was concluded.

What I find interesting is the noose used..not any typical sliding knot or hangmans noose ....but a very wide opened noose, that I find used in many suicides in Thailand, It is not the typical suicide noose used, well I have never encountered it and I have seen a few ( slip knot, hangmansnoose, sliding knot..etc..) however search the net and you will find the open noose regulary used for suicides in Thailand...

[smotherb]

http://www.academia.edu/903627/Precautions_Taken_to_Avoid_Abandoning_the_Act_of_Hanging_and_Reducing_Pain_in_Suicidal_Hanging_Cases

This is quite interesting, it seems that people do elect to tie their hands before this method of suicide, bit graphic this link so if you don't want to look at dead bodies best not use it.

Absolutely refreshing. You not only actually researched the subject, but you did it in a source other than wikipedia. Congrats monkeysu, congrats.

[lil fluffy clouds]

One can be forgiven for assuming foul play, I hear thailand has a long history of farang "suicides"...

[culicine]

How does one tie string around their hands behind their back?

...and he'd been drinking all night and into the morning! Yet can somehow tie his hands behind his back and then get his head through a dangling noose. Lets get a local drunken tourist to re-inact this, and just see how plausible it is.

[wow64]

He wrote iris I love you, suicide seems easy but it is actually very difficult.

Yes it's very difficult with your hands tied behind your back.

RIP to the victim.

[Gandtee]

How does one tie string around their hands behind their back?

He was a relative of Houdini! RIP

[cookee68]

How does one tie string around their hands behind their back?

You tie your hands round your front and then step through them - after 12 hours of drinking it's simple.

I DONT KNOW THE FULL DETAILS OF HIS HANGING, BUT LETS PRESUME HE PUT A ROPE UP WITH A HANGMANS NOOSE READY, TIED HIS HANDS, SLID HIS FEET THROUGH, CLIMBED UP ONTO SOME KIND OF STOOL, PUT HIS HEAD THROUH THE NOOSE, KICKED THE STOOL AWAY, HEY PRESTO YOU ARE HANGING, BUT WAS THERE A CHAIR LYING AROUND ANYWHERE,? SORRY FOR THE CAPITAL LETTER WRITTING MY KEY BOARD IS PLAYING UP,

Edited January 5, 2015 by cookee68

[Delcavom]

Damn,

I was hoping this would be a nice easy and shut case. Why do we need more speculation on this case.

A couple of things I would like to know:

1) Who is Iris? Can we find out some about Iris and what she has to say?

2) His tongue - was it sticking out when he was found dead? Most people who die by hanging will have their tongue sticking out.

3) Friends - what are his friends saying about this happening?

4) How did he perform this act of suicide after a full night of partying?

5) Who was he hanging out with before his death and what was he talking about?

I am not sure if it is the translation, but "believe" to die by asphyxiation sounds weak. How do they not KNOW?

[diehard60]

If one is drunk, which he must have been, how could he have tied his hands behind his back.Just because they found a note does not mean it was suicide. It could vbe that Iris did him in and wrote the note. Something fishy here.

[catweazle]

Would not be surprised if also his parents announce that they were so very pleased with the Koh Tao RTP work...

[gandalf12]

Do we have a potential serial killer there?

[Time Traveller]

In Merchant Marine school they teach to tie all knots behind your back. I just tied both arms behind my back moments ago. Not that hard.

How does one tie string around their hands behind their back?

do they also teach you how to do it after 12 hours of drinking?

[Doc46]

I trust his friends can confirm he appeared suicidal? After over 12 hours of drinking he managed to write a suicide note, then tie his hands behind his back and hang himself? Well, he certainly lived up to what he wrote. It was very difficult.

I dunno - Police and physicians carried out an autopsy and believe the cause of death was asphyxiation. Good grief, surely they can be more concise than this? Typical news report.

Oh well, wait until the next one...

This is Thailand,,,Anything is possible even the impossible,,,,Murder is murder,,,Suicide is suicide until proven otherwise,What the hell do we know ?

[stumac85]

NSFW but this piece of research is relevant: http://www.academia.edu/903627/Precautions_Taken_to_Avoid_Abandoning_the_Act_of_Hanging_and_Reducing_Pain_in_Suicidal_Hanging_Cases

Well read it carefully and you will notice that there is only 2 cases in the study , 1 case where the hand were found tied "limply" behind the victims back and 1 case where it was tied on the waist/side with clothesline figure 3 case 5.

None of the cases in the study resembles the bindings from Koh Tao, not saying it could not be a suicide, but a decent investigation should have been made before it was concluded.

What I find interesting is the noose used..not any typical sliding knot or hangmans noose ....but a very wide opened noose, that I find used in many suicides in Thailand, It is not the typical suicide noose used, well I have never encountered it and I have seen a few ( slip knot, hangmansnoose, sliding knot..etc..) however search the net and you will find the open noose regulary used for suicides in Thailand...

Yes, I have seen 1 photo that suggests the binds were quite tight. The angle wasn't brilliant though. There isn't enough information on this case to make a proper assessment. I'd like to know what language the note was written it for starters...

[SuwadeeS]

Another case to cheat and foul the world.

Thailand the land of smile, the smile of cheating.

[sambum]

A few weeks ago someone posted that now that the 2 Burmese scapegoats suspects in the murder of 2 backpackers were in custody, how long would it be before there was another suspicious death on Koh Tao. Now that the Frenchman's suicide sorry, suspicious death sorry, suicide has now been established as suicide, I wonder how long will it be before there is another suspicious death on Koh Tao?

[HerbalEd]

The string and hands part is very vague and I see nothing that says his hands were actually tied together behind his back. If, indeed, his hands were tied behind his back then obviously he was murdered, or is he was a magician who wanted to <deleted> with our minds.

[BkruaiRetiree]

I have one other question: If indeed the man is/was a French national, and if the suicide note - as published - is correct, WHY WOULD HE WRITE IT IN ENGLISH?

[Gerard052]

In Merchant Marine school they teach to tie all knots behind your back. I just tied both arms behind my back moments ago. Not that hard.

How does one tie string around their hands behind their back?

You must be Superman!!!!