Business dispute blamed for deadly poisoning of 6 in Bangkok hotel

UPDATED at 11:35 a.m. ET on 2024-07-17

The foreigners whose bodies were found by staff at Bangkok’s luxury Grand Hyatt Erawan hotel on Tuesday evening were poisoned, Thai police said at a news briefing Wednesday.

There were traces in cups in the room where the three men and three women were discovered on Tuesday evening. Two of the six were Vietnamese Americans and four were Vietnamese nationals.

“We found cyanide in the teacups. One of them was definitely the culprit,” Police Maj. Gen. Noppasin Punsawat, Bangkok deputy police chief said, adding that CCTV cameras showed no one else had entered the room.

Noppasin said there had been a dispute between U.S. citizens Sherine Chong, 56, and Dang Hung Van, 55, and at least two of the other four. 

He said Chong was given an equivalent of 10 million baht (U.S. $278,000) to invest in the construction of a hospital in Japan but was suspected of cheating her partners after the project made no progress.

“This case is about personal conflict, no trans-border criminals were involved,” Noppasin said.

Police identified the four Vietnamese citizens as married couple Pham Hong Thanh, 49, and Nguyen Thi Phuong, 46, who they believe had been cheated by Chong, along with Thi Nguyen Phuong Lan, 47, and Tran Dinh Phu, 37.

A seventh person, thought to have been part of the group and a sibling of one of the dead, returned to Vietnam on July 10, police said, adding that they believe she had no involvement in the deaths.

Retired police Col. Wirut Sirisawatdibutr, secretary-general of the Institute for Justice System Reform, said the investigation should not be rushed.

“There’s an effort to minimize damage to the country’s image, as the prime minister immediately visited the scene and stated it’s not related to safety issues, to avoid impacting tourism and the economy,” he said.

After visiting the scene Tuesday night, Thai Prime Srettha Thavisin ordered a swift investigation to avoid any negative impact on tourism.

“This warrants concerns about potential distortion of facts. The police must clarify the case to eliminate public doubts,” Wirut said, adding investigators need to clarify the circumstances that led to the deaths, including how the cyanide was mixed into the drinks.

“It couldn’t have been consumed individually, they must have been encouraged to drink together. This group was likely already suspicious of each other, so the person who poisoned them had to die too,” he said. 

Rangsiman Rome, a Move Forward Party MP, also called for a thorough investigation.

“If this is an issue that could affect international relations, we need to consider whether our intelligence agencies could have foreseen this happening,” he said.

“The duty of the police organization is to bring clarity to this matter, not to shroud it in secrecy. Otherwise, Thailand will lose faith in its justice system and undoubtedly damage the country’s image severely,” he said.

Hotel security staff entered Suite 502 from the back door after the group failed to check out on Tuesday. The front door to the room had been locked from the inside. Police said the bodies had probably been there for around 24 hours, although they are still waiting for the results of an official autopsy. 

Joint investigation

The FBI and Vietnamese officials are working alongside Thai police to track the group’s movements and interview any witnesses, Noppasin said.

Vietnam’s ambassador to Thailand Pham Viet Hung met with Srettha on Tuesday to discuss the case, Vietnamese media reported.

Pham Thu Hang, Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman, said in a statement on Wednesday that the ministry was working with Ministry of Public Security to verify the identities of the four citizens.

“Additionally, the Vietnamese Embassy in Bangkok was also working closely with Thai authorities to investigate the incident and with relevant Vietnamese agencies to inform the bereaved families and take necessary citizen protection measures,” she said.

The U.S. State Department said it was aware of the deaths of two of its citizens.

“We offer our sincere condolences to the families on their loss. We are closely monitoring the situation and stand ready to provide consular assistance to those families,” spokesman Matthew Miller said at a briefing in Washington.

The 380-room Grand Hyatt Erawan is in the upscale Ratchaprasong district, an area popular with tourists. It is just down the street from the high-end Siam Paragon shopping mall where, in October 2023, a 14-year old Thai boy fatally shot two women from China and Myanmar and injured five other people.

Nontarat Phaicharoen in Bangkok contributed to this story produced by Radio Free Asia, a news service affiliated with BenarNews.

This story was updated to include comments from an analyst, a member of the Thai parliament and a Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman.