Thai forensics ready to hand over bodies of Vietnamese group

Autopsies on the bodies of six people who died at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok have been completed, Dr. Chanchai Sittipunt, director of Chulalongkorn Hospital in Bangkok, announced on July 18.

The forensic team has examined every aspect, but is still waiting to see if police investigators have any further questions before releasing the bodies to the families, Mr Chanchai said. "However, from what we have seen and talked to, I believe they have no further suspicions," he said.

Relatives of the victims can receive the bodies according to the normal procedure, Mr. Chanchai said. However, relatives need to contact the Vietnamese and US embassies, as well as submit a request to the Thai Institute of Forensic Medicine.

The autopsy was conducted after police found six people, including four Vietnamese citizens and two Vietnamese-Americans, dead in room 502 of the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok on July 16. Preliminary investigation results showed that the six died of cyanide poisoning and the suspect is Sherine Chong, a Vietnamese-American citizen. Ms. Chong's body was also discovered at the scene.

The forensic team has taken samples from the bodies to test for cyanide. Regarding the details of the autopsy, Chanchai said he had to consult with all relevant parties before releasing them.

Royal Thai Police Assistant Commissioner Itthiphon Atchariyapradit said on the same day that relatives of the five deceased had arrived at Lumpini Police Station, which covers the area where the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel is located, to provide statements. Thai authorities are contacting the US Embassy to determine the identity of the remaining Vietnamese-American victim.

Thai forensics also opened all eight suitcases of the victims for family members to confirm. Most of the belongings inside were clothes, no cash and no objects that could be related to the victims' deaths were found.

When asked if there was “snake medicine number 7” in the suitcases, Itthiphon said he was “not sure” and did not know what the medicine looked like. However, Itthiphon knew that it was a popular tonic among Vietnamese people. The forensic team will conduct another check to determine if there is “snake medicine number 7” in the luggage.

Thai media reported that a woman in a group of Vietnamese people asked a tour guide to buy "snake medicine number 7" in Thailand. Police spoke to the tour guide as a witness and learned that a second tour guide had bought the medicine for her. Thai police are said to be searching for the tour guide.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today that Vietnam is coordinating the investigation and asking Thailand to provide more information about the deaths of a group of Vietnamese people at a hotel in Bangkok, as well as creating conditions for Vietnam to implement citizen protection measures.

The Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand is continuously contacting local authorities to promptly guide the victims' families through funeral procedures when permitted, according to Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Pham Thu Hang.