Thai police charge local man with murder of Swiss tourist on Phuket
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The victim was visiting Thailand under the new Phuket Sandbox tourist campaign.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BANGKOK (REUTERS) - Police in Thailand said on Sunday (Aug 8) that a 27-year-old Thai man had been charged with the murder a Swiss woman who was found dead earlier this week on the resort island of Phuket.
"Police have charged the offender with murder and robbery causing death," deputy police spokesman Krisana Pattanacharoen said at a news conference in Phuket.
"The cause of death has yet to be confirmed and autopsy (result) has yet to be released," he said.
The victim, 57-year-old Swiss tourist Nicole Sauvain-Weisskopf, was visiting Thailand under the new Phuket Sandbox tourist campaign, which allows fully vaccinated travellers to enter the island without quarantine as long as they remain there for two weeks.
The suspect knocked out the tourist and robbed her, having encountered the woman at a waterfall where he had gone to find fruits, deputy provincial police chief Nanthadet Yoinuan said.
"He found 300 baht (S$12) in her bag and used it (on) drugs, drinks and phone repairs," he said.
After he was detained and questioned, the suspect confessed to attacking the victim, the deputy police chief added.
Police also took the unusual step of having the suspect call in to the press briefing to make a statement.
The safety of visitors is a sensitive issue for Thailand, as tourism is a key industry, accounting for 12 per cent of gross domestic product in 2019, although it has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
