Police in murder hunt after death of Japanese tourist
BANGKOK – Authorities in Thailand are concerned at recent attacks on tourists, the most tragic of which resulted in the death of a Japanese visitor.
Tomoko Kawashita, 27, was found dead last Sunday in a small jungle near Wat Saphan Hin. Her body had three stab wounds to the neck and one to the waist
The Nation newspaper reported that Ms Kawashita had saved money for her Thailand trip by taking extra jobs and was especially attracted to the Loy Krathong festival.
Police are asking owners of all guesthouses and tourist lodging services in Sukhothai province to sift through information for possible clues in the hunt for the killer.
In Phuket, a Dutch tourist is recovering in Bangkok Phuket Hospital after being stabbed twice by a knife-wielding thief outside the Downtown Market on Ranong Road.
The tourist, 51-year-old Thomas De Klerk, was shopping at the market with his wife at the time of the attack, staff at the hospital told the Phuket Gazette.
The victim and his wife were loading goods into a tuk-tuk about 50 metres from the entrance to the market at about 10:30 pm when the thief ran up and ripped the victim’s money pack from around his waist.
The Dutchman gave chase and caught up with the man. The pair were fighting for possession of the pack when the thief allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed De Klerk twice, once in the left hand and once in the abdomen.
Ian Jarrett
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