Frenchman found dead with throat slashed in Udon Thani

[eldragon]

Sounds like suicide. He was able to cut his throat and throw away the glass and knife afterwards. RIP.

And no traces.....please Google how many foreigners got killed in Udon Thani.Scary.

........What are you talking about? Scary? Hardly any compared to most western cities of this size!......Only 2 others mentioned on google plus the Koh Tao copycat murder mentioned by someone on here, which, I grant you was worrying.

You are at far greater risk of being killed on the roads in Thailand!

.........And at much greater risk of murder in tourist areas.

The scary part is the notion that Officer Somchai could care less when a foreigner is murdered in TH and will make little to no effort to find the killer unless the case is widely publicized.

[emilymat]

If I'm going to knock someone off in this country I will ensure everything is left neat and tidy. "No sign of a struggle" gets you off the hook every time.

[luckyman]

Sounds like suicide. He was able to cut his throat and throw away the glass and knife afterwards. RIP.

And no traces.....please Google how many foreigners got killed in Udon Thani.Scary.

In recent memory:

The bar owner who was followed home by the Thai assistant manager and hacked to death with a machete? for the night's takings which he kept in his sock.

The 22 yr old German who had the audacity to be in the public park one morning when 3 local guys decided to emulate the Koh Tao murders for fun, and smashed his head in with a hoe..... Never heard any follow up on them in the media.

When you move to the jungle, never underestimate the sheer savageness of the locals.

Depends on the individual, I believe...

I love Udon thani and it's people and come there often for more than 7 years now, for my work mostly.

I am very familiar with and bear ultimate respect for local cultures and speak fluent Thai, maybe that helps, but eitherway I feel 10 times saver late at night in Udon Thani than in say Paris or London.

[farcanell]

Poor bloke... Rest easy.

The tourist department need to change there LOS acronym...

Land of suicides/ scams / sex and stupidity

[Brer Fox]

Sounds like suicide. He was able to cut his throat and throw away the glass and knife afterwards. RIP.

And no traces.....please Google how many foreigners got killed in Udon Thani.Scary.

I am a regular traveller around Thailand and a visitor to many provincial areas, particularly in Isaan, to enjoy the culture and visit long time friends. I guess I should now cross Udon Thani off my list. My list is getting shorter and shorter by the year so I guess eventually it will be so short there will no point in me coming to Thailand anymore and bringing my spending money with me. If the reports in Thai Visa are anything to go by it seems increasingly certain I will be rewarded with death either on the roads or at the hands of a violent desperado mugger or raving lunatic or yaba addict if i continue with the same lifestyle in the LoS. I think I need to reconsider my travel arrangements. TAT please take note.

Don't talk bo$$$$ks.

If that is your best effort at some intelligent debate on these forums I pity you. Go back to your bar stool.

[LukKrueng]

Left or right handed , slash ? Self hypnosis ? A thousand years of Samurai culture of committing seppeku ( hair kari ) and most of them could not complete the ritual of plunging a knife into the stomach ,

how some one slashes their own throat what would the odds be on being able to do that 1-6million ?

"A thousand years of Samurai culture of committing seppeku ( hair kari ) and most of them could not complete the ritual of plunging a knife into the stomach"

Most of them didn't have 7 bottles of Chang (or whatever) down their necks before picking up the blade...........................

Silly comments, IMO especially when talking about someone who might just have been that one in six million (??) and taken their own life. Depression can be a terrible thing. .

I guess you have all the information,of autopsy and stomach contents , blood alcohol , etc, and you knew personally that he was depressed,

I guess you have all the information to suggest a murder??

Everyone here is just speculating, like they do on all such threads.

[TheCruncher]

Sounds like suicide. He was able to cut his throat and throw away the glass and knife afterwards. RIP.

And no traces.....please Google how many foreigners got killed in Udon Thani.Scary.

a long time ago i had a girlfriend from udon thani.

she wanted to marry me. then i discovered that her family owed 200,000 THB and that i was expected to pay this off.

i discused the matter with another farang and his girlfriend who were in a nearby house.

i should not have done this. she told my girlfriend who then refused to sleep with me and threatened to have me killed.

it was late afternoon and too late to catch a bus out of the area so i stayed in the family house.

i left the lght on all night, put pillows in the bed, and sat in an armchair facing the door but hidden.

in the morning i just left. she later finished me and i believe is still working in pattaya looking for a victim.

the father was peaceful enough but you never can tell.

it is always money and lots of it.

falungs do get attacked if the money is not paid.

You have since been treated for your paranoia?

[kandi]

On "Farang Deaths" it's been said his name was "Russell Christian". Can anybody confirm this? I think a friend of mine knew him.

http://www.farang-deaths.com/case/russell-christian/

[farcanell]

Left or right handed , slash ? Self hypnosis ? A thousand years of Samurai culture of committing seppeku ( hair kari ) and most of them could not complete the ritual of plunging a knife into the stomach ,

how some one slashes their own throat what would the odds be on being able to do that 1-6million ?

"A thousand years of Samurai culture of committing seppeku ( hair kari ) and most of them could not complete the ritual of plunging a knife into the stomach"

Most of them didn't have 7 bottles of Chang (or whatever) down their necks before picking up the blade...........................

Silly comments, IMO especially when talking about someone who might just have been that one in six million (??) and taken their own life. Depression can be a terrible thing. .

I guess you have all the information,of autopsy and stomach contents , blood alcohol , etc, and you knew personally that he was depressed,

I guess you have all the information to suggest a murder??

Everyone here is just speculating, like they do on all such threads

Samurai's committing seppuka had a " second" for the very reason that most could not do it properly... But then " properly" isn't a good description, as eviseration does not really kill a person quickly... The kill was the job of the " second" who would traditionally behead the person committing ." Hair kari"

So the ritual was really a self initiated beheading, so it did not matter in the least if the stomach cutting was accurate or not... It was merely symbolic... And as such, the practice evolved into simply reaching for a sword, and a good second would start his swing to behead the primary.

That's historical... And any conversation about the frenchmans death is indeed speculation... And speculating, with the amount of suicides in this country, were guys are found dangling with hands tied behind the back, this could well be murder

However, I suspect that the chained door will result in a quick decision that this was a suicide.

Whichever way.... At day's end, a man is dead... Pity him and his frame of mind, if it was suicide... If murder, let's hope that the BIB do their job properly

[huawei]

Sounds like suicide. He was able to cut his throat and throw away the glass and knife afterwards. RIP.

And no traces.....please Google how many foreigners got killed in Udon Thani.Scary.

I am a regular traveller around Thailand and a visitor to many provincial areas, particularly in Isaan, to enjoy the culture and visit long time friends. I guess I should now cross Udon Thani off my list. My list is getting shorter and shorter by the year so I guess eventually it will be so short there will no point in me coming to Thailand anymore and bringing my spending money with me. If the reports in Thai Visa are anything to go by it seems increasingly certain I will be rewarded with death either on the roads or at the hands of a violent desperado mugger or raving lunatic or yaba addict if i continue with the same lifestyle in the LoS. I think I need to reconsider my travel arrangements. TAT please take note.

Don't talk bo$$$$ks.

If that is your best effort at some intelligent debate on these forums I pity you. Go back to your bar stool.

Not exactly an imaginative response to someone using the word bo$$$$ks!! I pity you.

[saakura]

53yrs old, too young to die in such tragic circumstances. As per his Thai GF Ms.Aprinya, they had known each other since a month and were intending to get married. Either too gullible or just another alcoholic deadbeat washing up on the shores of Thailand. Hope they investigate this lady thoroughly. Maybe he paid the sinsod in advance?

[pedro01]

After seeing the horrific pictures (something I wouldn't want to ever see again) I find it unbelievable that anyone outside the RTP could consider it was a suicide.(Unless the guy was also high on drugs.)

Whatever, RIP.

Why?

There really are no signs of a struggle that we can see in the pics.

Looks like most of the blood is in the bathroom which in a suicide is probably where you would cut yourself - the blood on his hands and body is what you'd expect.

[pedro01]

Whats really sickening about this is the total disregard for peoples dignity and the feelings of relatives etc?

Why oh why in the name of some god somewhere is it deemed perfectly normal to show these type of photos?.

A truly appalling custom of this country!

Stickman is a sick self-promotionist who will do anything for hits on his web site.

[gigman]

Very clever.

There is a hundreds of ideas to kill yourself but not this way.

Someone on TV said ; " It could be a far more suspect story without the Chain"

Yes, totally agree .

Someone very clever did it.

Just my guessing...; kill him with broken glass bottle lock the door with chain to pretend suicide then leave the room .

It is only first floor and it is easy even jump down after all.

First thing I would check his account and activities even long time before his death.

It could be not paying back debtor and loaner dispute.

Suicide..? I'm not buying it...

Clever but also naive if case comes to good forensic's.

Edited December 18, 2015 by gigman

[roo860]

Sounds like suicide. He was able to cut his throat and throw away the glass and knife afterwards. RIP.

And no traces.....please Google how many foreigners got killed in Udon Thani.Scary.

I am a regular traveller around Thailand and a visitor to many provincial areas, particularly in Isaan, to enjoy the culture and visit long time friends. I guess I should now cross Udon Thani off my list. My list is getting shorter and shorter by the year so I guess eventually it will be so short there will no point in me coming to Thailand anymore and bringing my spending money with me. If the reports in Thai Visa are anything to go by it seems increasingly certain I will be rewarded with death either on the roads or at the hands of a violent desperado mugger or raving lunatic or yaba addict if i continue with the same lifestyle in the LoS. I think I need to reconsider my travel arrangements. TAT please take note.

Don't talk bo$$$$ks.

If that is your best effort at some intelligent debate on these forums I pity you. Go back to your bar stool.

Not exactly an imaginative response to someone using the word bo$$$$ks!! I pity you.

Intelligent debate, have you read some of the b@@@$cks on here?????

[roo860]

Whats really sickening about this is the total disregard for peoples dignity and the feelings of relatives etc?

Why oh why in the name of some god somewhere is it deemed perfectly normal to show these type of photos?.

A truly appalling custom of this country!

Stickman is a sick self-promotionist who will do anything for hits on his web site.

Stickboy, Stickman's report is every Sunday, today is Friday.

[spidermike007]

More gems from CSI Thailand, don't you guys have noses to pick, cats to feed? Anything, anything, but post your alarming lack of armchair detective abilities here...

The vast majority of posters on this forum have more intelligence and more ability as detectives than 99.9% of the toy cops.

And as for CSI, when your government gives you $25,000 to set up a forensics lab with antique equipment, and very few expertly trained technicians, you get poor results, and frequent conclusions of suicide. What else do you say when you have no answers?

[berybert]

RTP are going to need a new carpet and broom for the new year.

[manxninja]

Only six beers, I guess he was a light weight.

[Traveller45]

Well, it's perhaps a good idea to let the story of suicide stand in public while they chase the perpetrator. It is also a good idea to be publicly known as inept, so criminals feel safe. To perform such a laceration on himself he must have been plain crazy. And perhaps there is not so much difference after all as regards the outward signs, I mean, lots of blood gushing out, however caused, that's what it would look like. Still, the wound itself appears as if caused with quite strong impact and ferocious moment, I don't really see somebody doing that to himself, looks more like a machete to me

[silverado]

never in my life i have heard of suicide by throat slashing !!! nowhere in the world !! neither in a horror movie, neither in a science fiction novel ...

is somebody able to give me an example of a previous same case ? link to a movie/book or web story ?

Edited December 18, 2015 by silverado

[onetime]

according to the police reporting,

"Pieces of broken glass were also found there. There were no traces of a struggle, police said.

The man had sustained a severe wound to the right side of his throat which was about 10cm long, There were also wounds to the fingers of both hands, forensic officers said. "

So, cuts on both hands are never signs of struggling with somebody who holds a knife ready to slash your throat?

Where did the forensics learn their job, in a kindergarden building LEGO castles?

No report on a knife found, so how do you slash your throat left handed with a piece of broken glas, if the glas was the weapon?

These are not forensics the police employs, these guys should do a different job as they are obviously not fit for doing forensic research.

The report also shows a picture of the room, it is on ground level, and there's a large slide door leading to the outside, and guess what, i bet it was just pushed close after the murderer left, but our forensics didn't mind because the chain indicated a better motif which would be a quicker end to all the work they are supposed to do. Give the press an easy explanation and close the case, everything else would be too much work.

This is quite odd. It seems that instead of having open verdicts, they give a possible, yet unlikely "verdict" and that's the end of it. Having said this, please let's not forget that if the tables were turned, there wouldn't even have been a story to hear about. If you put a body in a hole here, no one will ever find it. The lazy bastards even dump bodies in rivers without bothering to weigh them down for <deleted> sake.

There was this case not so many years' ago when this hit man was sent to Koh Pagnan, and he was seen coming and killed by the would be target. They just left him rotting on a bit of land for people to find the very next day. In a normal country, getting rid of bodies is one of the three pillars of the assassin's doctrine: 1. availability of target; 2. disposal of body; and, 3. means of preventing detection (alibis, etc.). Hilariously, here, they go for the 'make it look like an accident' without bothering with all of the basics. It's like trying to run before you can walk, a bit like the driving. Obviously in neither case is the "accident theory" plausible to anyone

The 'pro's' here, pop you, pull the teeth, and burn the body under tires. You don't get this level of service for 10,000 baht.

My advice for staying safe; stay in the shadows, don't make friends with any locals, never take anyone home, dress like you're poor, avoid the foreign criminal element that Thailand attracts, get out before the place blows up.....

[dundee48]

Another open and shut case of suicide for this guy. Chained on the inside will be their reasoning. Forget that it is one of the hardest ways to kill yourself. Slicing your own throat is not an easy task both physically and mentally

You never know,...In a friends apartment building my town in Europe, one day they found a girl at the entrance bleeding profusely. she had knife wounds all over her doddy. She was rushed to the hospital were she told investigators that she was attacked by a man and stabbed several times...As the investigation got on the way she confessed to have inflicted the wounds herself. she was in desperate need of attention....!!!!?!?!?

Best regards. Off Road pat

Yes,amazingly this happens every other day in Thailand.

[dundee48]

Just for those trolls who like to make up their own version of the reports that have actually appeared here and in the Chiang Mai media, nowhere was the word suicide used by the police neither did they state that suicide was what caused the man's death. They did say that they were investigating his death

There were no traces of a struggle, police said.What does this imply to you?

It implies to me that they are not looking for anyone else in this matter,in other words it`s a suicide so move on,if that makes me a troll in your eyes i could give a shit.

[farcanell]

A quick look at suicide methods on wiki, only mentions exsanguination via wrist slashing, indicating that to slash ones own throat is very rare to unheard of.... Yer, I know... Heard of it now

The wrist is a much easier target to find, therefore a higher potential to succeed... Throat slashing makes no sense really

What also makes no sense is the use of broken glass, were knives can be brought so easily at any market.... And as suicide is generally a planned event, I would suggest that the norm would be to buy a knife ( glass is used when knives are unattainable, such as in prison) beforehand

Also, I think that the body would be found in repose... Seated comfortably, as the blood drains away, quickly weakening the body.

If this is truly a suicide, the only thing that comes to my mind, is that the guy foolishly figured that he would send a message, such as to make someone else feel guilty.

[jspill]

Just for those trolls who like to make up their own version of the reports that have actually appeared here and in the Chiang Mai media, nowhere was the word suicide used by the police neither did they state that suicide was what caused the man's death. They did say that they were investigating his death

'The investigation is deciding whether he took his own life or was murdered.' The last line in the article.

How would you feel if that was someone you knew? I'd be disgusted to read that in the article. So no they didn't state 'it was suicide' but it's obnoxious and I doubt we'd see that in a western newspaper. That combined with the long history of Thai police ruling suicide makes people's here (and echoed around social media from what I've seen) quite justified, they're hardly trolls.

Edited December 18, 2015 by jspill

[farcanell]

Just for those trolls who like to make up their own version of the reports that have actually appeared here and in the Chiang Mai media, nowhere was the word suicide used by the police neither did they state that suicide was what caused the man's death. They did say that they were investigating his death

'The investigation is deciding whether he took his own life or was murdered.' The last line in the article.

How would you feel if that was someone you knew? I'd be disgusted to read that in the article. So no they didn't state 'it was suicide' but it's obnoxious and I doubt we'd see that in a western newspaper. That combined with the long history of Thai police ruling suicide makes people's here (and echoed around social media from what I've seen) quite justified, they're hardly trolls.

Whilst I cannot speak to the matter of all "western media", I can say that in Australia, suicides are largely downplayed, as stats show that a confirmed suicide encourages other would be suicidal persons

When they are reported, often as a plea for others to not follow suit, gory details are never mentioned... Its unseemly and insensitive to the family.

This lack of reporting is not due to any law, but is an example of the media self regulating ( mind you, it's the only example that I can think of)

[katana]

The story was reported in the Thai language press on Thursday. A couple of articles said that the police hadn't ruled out murder until they had looked at CCTV footage from the boarding house.
However a story yesterday on the news.sanook website, summarised below, said the police had decided on suicide:

The owner of the boarding house, 28 year-old Mrs Warunee, said Mr Christian, the deceased, a 52 year-old Frenchman, been renting the room since the 12th September, paying daily. On the 16th the deceased had knocked on her door asking to change to paying monthly. He arranged to come back later in the day to pay her the rent however he'd gone out without paying and she didn't follow it up.
On Thursday morning (17th) she knocked on his door to collect the rent but there was no answer. She then phoned his girlfriend but there was no reply.
The door was locked from the inside via a chain when she tried the master key, but she caught a glimpse of blood stains and his feet sticking out from the bathroom so she called the police who broke down the door and found him lying dead in the bathroom.
The TV was left on and 2,400 Baht in cash lay untouched on the table.
Examination of CCTV footage showed him entering the hostel at 2pm on the 16th where he smoked a cigarette outside his room. He was acting normally and greeted fellow guests at the hostel before entering his room alone. After that no one was seen to leave or enter the room until his body was discovered on the morning of the 17th.
His girlfriend, 52 year-old Mrs Apinya, said he was a cabinet maker by profession. He had been to Thailand three times already but she'd only been dating him for a month. On the morning of the 16th they'd both been to a merit making ceremony with monks for her niece who'd just bought some new land about 800m from the hostel. At 2pm he'd asked to be excused and gone off back home to his room and she hadn't seen him again until his body was discovered.
Mrs Apinya continued that he was a serious type and had told her his parents and brother were already dead leaving him alone in the world. He'd seen her large family who were in contact with each other regularly and seemed to all get on well and take care of each other. He asked to marry her and she'd agreed although dates hadn't been finalised yet. She had no idea he was feeling suicidal and would take his life.
Police Colonel Som Wayo from Udon Thani Police Station said an inspection of the room showed no signs of a struggle or missing valuables. CCTV footage showed no one else enter or leave the room. When he died he was alone. It's surmised that he felt lonely and depressed so he decided to take his life by smashing a glass cup and slashing his neck and wrist.
An inspection of his room and CCTV footage indicates suicide not murder.
The body was taken to Udonthani Hospital before contacting the French Embassy.

Edited January 31, 2016 by Rimmer

[crouchpeter]

Suicides who cut their own throats can walk into another room before collapsing! Blood everywhere!

[roo860]

never in my life i have heard of suicide by throat slashing !!! nowhere in the world !! neither in a horror movie, neither in a science fiction novel ...

is somebody able to give me an example of a previous same case ? link to a movie/book or web story ?

Here's one, my great grandfather slashed his own throat in front of his family.

They have not yet made a film, or a book being written about it, or being featured on the Internet, so in a lot of people's minds it never happened!

Edited December 19, 2015 by roo860