Police check out Chiang Mai death hotel

7 Mar 2011

Police have investigated the deaths of several guests at a Thai hotel and say foul play is not involved. Four visitors staying at the Downtown Inn in the northern city of Chiang Mai died within a three-week period last month.

The first victim Waraporn Yingmahasaranont, a 47-year-old Thai tour guide, was found outside the bathroom of her room at the hotel on 3 February. Investigators say she had had diarrhoea prior to her death.

The next person to die was New Zealander Sarah Carter, 23, who was staying in a room on the same floor at the inn with two friends. All three went to a hospital in the city after coming down with what looked like food poisoning.

Ms Carter died on 19 February while one of her friends needed emergency medical treatment. Hotel employees say the trio had brought back take-away barbecued pork and chicken to eat in their room before they got sick.

On the fourth floor, the one below the previous victims’ rooms, a British couple George and Elean Everly, both in their 70s, were discovered to have passed away. One of the pair was lying on a bed and the other was on the floor and no toxic medicine was found in the room.

A spokesman for Chiang Mai police, Lieutenant Colonel Sawat Lakas, said a post mortem had revealed the pensioners had both died from enlarged heart muscles and blocked arteries. He added that final conclusions on the first two victims had not been reached yet

Hotel staff say that as a result of the untimely deaths there had been a drop in reservations and that Buddhist monks would be performing an exorcism ceremony at the premises this week.

Tags: hotel deaths