With the cooperation between Thai police, Vietnamese authorities and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the tragedy at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel on July 16 has gradually become clear.
New information related to the case was updated at a joint press conference between Major General Noppasin Punsawat, Deputy Chief of Bangkok Police; Lieutenant General Trairong Phiwphan, head of the Thai Police Forensic Science Department and Major General Thiradej Thamsuthee, head of the Investigation Department of the Bangkok Metropolitan Police Department.
Thai senior police held a press conference on July 17 to announce the massacre at a 5-star hotel in Bangkok. Photo: Khaosod
Timelines
They said the police had conducted an autopsy, collected evidence and interviewed more than 10 relevant witnesses, including relatives of the deceased. They had also examined eight pieces of luggage. The findings could be summarized as follows:
1) Ms. Sherine Chong, 56 years old, American: Found dead near the dining table in room 502. Entered Thailand at 1:05 p.m. on July 5 (local time) from Ho Chi Minh City. She had been to Thailand 5 times before and was the one who checked into room 502, where the incident occurred.
2) Ms. Nguyen Thi Phung Lan, 47 years old, Vietnamese nationality: Wearing a pink shirt, died in the bedroom in room 502. Entered Thailand at 12:56 on July 4 from Da Nang. Had been to Thailand 17 times.
3) Mr. Tran Dinh Phu, 37 years old, Vietnamese nationality: Found dead near Ms. Nguyen Thi Phung Lan and Mr. Dang Hung Van. Entered Thailand at 12:28 on July 12 from Da Nang. Has been to Thailand 11 times.
4) Mr. Dang Hung Van, 55 years old, American nationality: Wearing a blue shirt, died near Ms. Nguyen Thi Phung Lan. Entered Thailand for the first time at 09:55 on July 7 from Taipei, Taiwan - China.
5) Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong, 46 years old, Vietnamese nationality: Wearing a white shirt, died near the door of the room. Entered Thailand at 1:48 p.m. on July 12 from Ho Chi Minh City. Had been to Thailand 3 times.
6) Mr. Pham Hong Thanh, 49 years old, Vietnamese nationality: Husband of Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong, was found dead in his bedroom. Entered Thailand for the first time, arrived with his wife at 13:48 on July 12 from Ho Chi Minh City. His name was not on the hotel check-in list because he was traveling with his wife.
Surveillance camera footage shows Sherine Chong, a Vietnamese-American who is suspected of poisoning five other people to death at a luxury hotel in central Bangkok. Photo: Khaosod
Surveillance cameras from the hotel showed that everyone checked in by themselves, and no one else entered the room. On July 14 and 15, no one other than the six victims entered room 502, except for the food service staff who provided complete information.
Data from July 14 shows that Ms. Sherine Chong was in room 502. Next, 5 other people came to this room between 11pm and midnight, then returned to their rooms.
On July 15, after checking out, everyone moved their luggage to room 502. At 11:42, Mr. Dang Hung Van ordered food from the hotel, Mr. Tran Dinh Phu then ordered fried rice, requesting it to be delivered at 2:00 p.m. The room service staff brought the food at 1:51 p.m., taking 6 minutes to serve the food.
The plates of Thai food in room 502 of the hotel were still untouched. Photo: Khaosod
Overview of the case of many Vietnamese people dying in a hotel in Thailand
According to the room service staff, when they entered, they only saw Ms. Sherine Chong. When the staff offered to make tea, Ms. Sherine Chong refused and said she would make it herself. The staff noted that Ms. Sherine Chong seemed quite tense and did not smile, even when the staff complimented her on her beautiful outfit.
After the room service staff left at 13:57, from 14:03 onwards, the victims entered room 502 one by one. After that, no one was seen entering or leaving the room until the bodies were discovered.
The bodies were discovered at 4:30 p.m. on July 16 when hotel staff came to check the room because it was past check-out time.
Traces of cyanide
Forensic tests revealed cyanide in the liquid from the teapot, residue in all six cups of coffee, and in the blood of one of the deceased. It was found that one of the deceased had poisoned the group with cyanide, stemming from a $278,000 debt.
Five cups of tea containing cyanide were found in the suspect's hotel room, all of which had been consumed. Photo: Khaosod
According to relatives, Ms. Sherine Chong asked Ms. Nguyen Thi Phung Lan to act as a broker to convince Mr. and Mrs. Nguyen Thi Phuong and Pham Hong Thanh to invest 278,000 USD (more than 7 billion VND) to build a hospital in Japan.
When the project did not progress, Phuong and Thanh repeatedly asked Sherine Chong to return the money. Initially, they agreed to meet in Japan to settle the debt, but when one of them failed to get a visa, they changed the meeting location to Thailand, according to Khaosod newspaper.
The cases of Tran Dinh Phu and Dang Hung Van are still unclear. The two men did not invest any money but it is believed they were invited to discuss potential investments. Investigations also revealed that Sherine Chong booked a room for Dang Hung Van but he used her credit card to pay for the room.
The results of the examination of the 8 pieces of luggage of the victims did not reveal any illegal acts. The incident was confirmed to be due to personal conflicts between 6 individuals and was not related to any transnational criminal organization.
"None of the six victims had a criminal record," Khaosod quoted Thai authorities as saying.
Tea bags containing traces of cyanide are being tested by Thai forensics. Photo: Khaosod
According to the Bangkok Post, police at Lumphini station questioned Phan Ngoc Vu, 35, who worked as a tour guide for the group. Vu told reporters that he only knew one of the six people before and had only met them last year.
Source: https://nld.com.vn/tham-an-nguoi-viet-tai-thai-lan-tinh-hinh-den-nay-ra-sao-19624071723202977.htm
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