Young Aussie found dead at popular tourist hotspot

A young Australian man has been found dead in Phuket, Thailand. Source: Getty

Mystery surrounds the death of a young Australian man found lifeless in a Thai hotel room — with a mobile phone placed on his chest and an active call still running. 

The man, believed to be in his early 20s, was discovered by staff at a hotel in Tambon Thepkrasattri on Wednesday morning, days after reportedly being involved in a motorcycle crash. Local authorities are investigating the circumstances, as questions grow around what led to his sudden death on the popular island of Phuket. 

Police Lieutenant Colonel Thanom Thongpaen said the man was still on a call when the body was discovered. "The line hadn't been disconnected, and he had died like that. There were no signs of struggle or anything suspicious," he told Reuters.

"It appeared he had been on the call for about 12 hours. The phone screen had gone dark, but we could still see the call duration and confirm he was on a call."

Thongpaen said there had been no signs of assault or a break-in in the room. "We don’t know who he was talking to," he said. 

"I tried speaking into the phone, but there was no response. The line remained active, but there was no voice on the other end. The phone was locked so that we couldn’t examine it further." 

Tambon Thepkrasattri is located in the northern part of Phuket Island. Source: Bloomberg

There were no signs of drugs or alcohol in the hotel room, aside from around 10 pills in blister packs provided by staff after the tourist asked for over-the-counter pain relief, according to Thongpaen.

"He likely took the medication before he passed away," Thongpaen said, noting the cause of death remains unclear. The man had been travelling alone, but hotel staff were able to contact a friend, who was also visiting Phuket from Australia, using a phone number they had on file.

Authorities are yet to release the name of the man, who was born in India but has an Australian passport. Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian who died in Thailand, a spokeswoman said.

Yahoo News has contacted the Department of Foreign Affairs for further comment. 

Back in May, a South Australian father of two was also found dead in Phuket, two weeks into a dream holiday with his wife and three days after he failed to return from an outing.

Anthony, from Mount Gambier, is believed to have struggled to swim against the strong currents when he died, with warnings now issued to other travellers in the wake of the tragedy.

with Reuters

This article originally appeared on Yahoo News Australia at https://au.news.yahoo.com/young-aussie-found-dead-at-popular-tourist-hotspot-231629495.html

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