A Vietnamese-American, Sherine Chong, has been identified by Thai police as the suspect who poisoned five others at the luxurious Grand Hyatt Erawan hotel in Bangkok, before killing herself with the poison.
Cyanide poisoning was likely the cause of the deaths, police said.
Thai investigators came to the conclusion after questioning witnesses, including the daughter of one of the dead, said Police Major General Theeradet Thumsuthee, head of investigation of Bangkok's Metropolitan Police Bureau, as cited by Thai newspapers Khaosod and Bangkok Post on July 17.
Debt issues are suspected to be the motive behind the deaths, said Theeradet. Thai police are not looking into other possible suspects, as the room where the bodies were discovered were locked from the inside and no one else was found to have entered. There were no signs of a struggle.
Chong is suspected to have drugged the others before committing suicide, Thai police said on July 17.
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"The case likely stems from a debt problem. There are no other possibilities. The culprit is among the six (dead) because they were the only people who entered the room. There were no others," Theeradet said.
The debt is suspected to have resulted from an investment in a construction business that went bust.
After questioning witnesses which included some of the deceased individual's relatives, investigators said that those who died were a mix of borrowers, lenders and guarantors, without providing further details. A report from the Royal Thai Police said two of the deceased were married to each other.
The amounts involved have not been revealed.
The group of three men and three women were all of Vietnamese descent. Two of them — including Chong, 56 — were American citizens.
According to various media reports, one of the victims was 37-year-old Vietnamese makeup artist Phu Gia Gia, who reportedly worked with Vietnamese celebrities and beauty queens. He was mourned by his family, as well as his fans who left their condolences on his Facebook page, when news broke of his death.
Their bodies were found by hotel staff in a fifth-floor room of the Grand Hyatt Erawan at around 5.30pm on July 16, hours after they had been expected to check out of their rooms.
The group had booked several rooms under seven names on different floors, said Bangkok police chief Thiti Saengsawang.
The seventh person is the younger sister of one of the deceased, Khaosod English news outlet reported. She had left Thailand on July 10, and is not suspected to have any involvement with the deaths.
Thiti noted that the group of six had ordered food via the hotel's room service, but it was untouched, with only some drinks consumed. Photos of plates of fried rice, vegetables and tom yum soup wrapped in plastic have been circulated online. Only one of the plates had its plastic seal removed.
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Forensic investigators cited by Khaosod on July 17 said they found cyanide in a water bottle in the room, describing it as a toxic, potent substance. The substance was mixed into a drink resembling black coffee.
"We found cyanide in the teacups, all six cups we found cyanide," commander of the Thai police evidence office Trirong Phiwpan, told a press conference on July 17.
"After staff brought tea cups and two hot water bottles, milk and tea pots... one of the six introduced cyanide."
The results of an autopsy were expected within the next day.
Police investigations are ongoing. The US' Federal Bureau of Investigation has also assisted with investigations. Vietnam's embassy in Bangkok said it was working with Thai authorities on the case.
The Grand Hyatt Erawan hotel in downtown Bangkok is a five-star luxury hotel popular with tourists. It is also next to the Erawan Shrine, which regularly attracts throngs of devotees.
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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
