American man with depression commits suicide at Phuket hotel

A Thai maid discovered the dead body of a 63 year old American man in his Phuket hotel room after he committed suicide yesterday, May 29. His Thai ex-girlfriend reported that the foreign man suffered from depression but did not seek treatment.

Hotel staff reported the death of the 63 year old foreign man, Michael Thomas, to Thalang Police Station officers around 10.40am yesterday. Thomas reportedly took his own life by hanging himself in the hotel room. The maid was the first to find Thomas’ body.

The maid and other hotel staff informed police that the American checked into the hotel alone on May 22, paying for his stay daily. However, he did not appear at the counter to pay for his stay as usual on May 28. Staff members noticed a “do not disturb” sign on his door and did not enter his room.

Fearing the guest had fled the hotel without payment, the maid decided to enter the room with a spare key at 3pm on that day. However, all of Thomas’ belongings remained. The maid entered Thomas’s room again on the next day, May 29, and found his dead body.

Police reported to the Phuket Times that Thomas’s valuables and belongings were untouched. He left a note in his passport asking the hotel and police to contact his Thai ex-girlfriend.

According to Khao Phuket, the Thai ex-girlfriend disclosed that she had been in a relationship with Thomas for about two years and four months before they broke up. She said Thomas was an introvert and suffered from depression but did not seek treatment.

The Thai woman said Thomas typically stayed in Thailand for three to four months before returning to the US. She contacted Thomas for the last time at 7pm on May 27 and later received an email from him at 8am on May 29, requesting her help with necessary arrangements after his death.

Officers reviewed security footage outside Thomas’s room and concluded that the case was a suicide, as no one else had entered the room except for Thomas and the maid.

If you or anyone you know is in emotional distress, please contact the Samaritans of Thailand 24-hour hotline: 02 713 6791 (English), 02 713 6793 (Thai), or the Thai Mental Health Hotline at 1323 (Thai). Please also contact your friends or relatives at this time if you have feelings of loneliness, stress, or depression. Seek help.