Body of Canadian man washes up on beach in southern Thailand

The body of a 63 year old Canadian man washed up on a beach on the mainland of Surat Thani province in southern Thailand yesterday evening. He went missing from Koh Pha Ngan island six days ago.

At 8pm, officers from Khanom Police Station rushed to Khanom Beach after a decaying body was discovered on the shore in front of the Khanom Power Plant in Thong Nian subdistrict.

Police identified the man as 63 year old Albert Floyd Newotta, of Canadian nationality, who was last seen at Phangan Villa Hotel in Koh Pha Ngan in southern Thailand on Tuesday, December 13.

Newotta’s wife Supaporn Newotta filed a report at Koh Pha Ngan Police Station on Saturday, December 17, after her husband went missing from the resort.

Supaporn and police officers went to inspect Newotta’s hotel room. His motorbike was parked outside and the door was locked.

Inside the room were all of Newotta’s belongings, including his mobile phone. The only things missing were his white paddleboard and paddle.

Witnesses reported seeing Newotta at the hotel on Saturday, December 13. Police suspect that he went out paddleboarding on Saturday afternoon.

Newotta’s body floated a distance of around 58 kilometres, washing up six days later on Thailand’s southeastern coast.

Weather conditions have been rough in southern Thailand recently, both on the Andaman Coast and in the Gulf of Thailand, causing a series of heartbreaking events.

The body of 22 year old Northern Irishman Odhran O’Neill was recovered from the waters of Khao Sok National Park, also in Surat Thani province, yesterday.

Last night, the HTMS Sukhothai, a Royal Thai Navy vessel, sank in the Gulf of Thailand around 20 miles off the coast of Prachuap Khiri Khan province with 106 crew members on board. The navy’s search for missing marines continues.

Ferry services in Koh Samui, Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Tao have all been suspended.