Japanese man found dead in Chiang Mai after four years of missing

The missing Japanese man who lost contact with his mother for four years reportedly died from an illness last year at a house in the northern province of Chiang Mai. His body remains at a hospital in the province.

The Japanese woman, 66 year old Yoshimi Nishi, arrived in Thailand on Monday, August 5, to search for her missing son, 39 year old Takahiro Nishi. Yoshimi disclosed that her son last contacted her in June 2020.

Then, on June 9, 2020, Yoshimi received an email from another person claiming her son was ill and needed 1 million yen, or about 240,000 baht, for treatment. Another email was sent requesting an additional 300,000 yen, but she became suspicious and did not send the money.

Police investigated Takahiro’s criminal history and discovered that he and his business partner, Maresuke Takami, were arrested for embezzlement in 2020. They were later bailed out for 100,000 baht each, and Takahiro subsequently disappeared.

Police summoned Maresuke’s girlfriend, Chonnakarn Katarat, who bailed them both out, for questioning at Khlongtan Police Station yesterday, August 6.

After five hours of questioning, police revealed to Channel 7 that Takahiro died at a house in the Sansai district of Chiang Mai at approximately 10pm on June 8, 2023. His body was transferred to Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital for an autopsy.

It is unclear whether Maresuke and Chonlakarn are still in a relationship but officers tracked him down to a rented house in the Ramintra neighbourhood of Bangkok and arrested him for overstaying his visa.

The hospital concluded that Takahiro died from a lung infection. His body remains at the hospital, awaiting contact from his family. Officers will conduct a DNA test to confirm Takahiro’s identity for his family.

According to the timeline, an email requesting 300,000 baht was sent after Takahiro’s death. Therefore, officers will investigate the bank account included in the email to identify the sender. Police added that Takahiro’s credit card showed spending at restaurants and hotels after his death.

ORIGINAL STORY: Japanese woman searches for son missing in Thailand for 4 years

A Japanese woman travelled to Thailand in search of her son, who had requested 240,000 baht for medical expenses four years ago and has been missing since. This missing Japanese man is found facing charges of embezzlement before his disappearance.

On August 5, 66 year old Yoshimi Nishi and her family visited Khlongtan Police Station to file a missing persons report for her son, 39 year old Takahiro Nishi, who had come to Thailand for work.

Yoshimi informed the police that she last contacted her son via the LINE app on June 29, 2020. Despite numerous attempts to reach him after that, she was unsuccessful.

On June 9 of the previous year, Yoshimi received an email stating that Takahiro was seriously ill and required 1 million yen (approximately 240,000 baht). A follow-up email on June 21 requested an additional 300,000 yen (around 73,000 baht) but Yoshimi chose not to transfer the funds.

Subsequently, Yoshimi visited the Japanese Embassy and discovered that Takahiro and his business partner had been arrested for embezzlement, based on arrest warrants issued in 2020. They were reportedly operating a company selling exercise equipment together.

Although both men were released on bail, they were required to report to the Bangkok South District Court. However, Takahiro has never appeared at the court.

Channel 3 reported that Takahiro entered Thailand on March 5, 2020, via the Nong Khai Immigration Office in the Isaan province of Nong Khai. His latest visa renewal was performed in the northern province of Nakhon Sawan on March 5, 2022, but there is no information he travelled out of Thailand

The mother was worried about Takahiro’s safety and suspected his son’s business partner of being involved in his disappearance. Police would coordinate with the Immigration Bureau to locate Takahiro and identify the person who bailed him and his business partner out at that time.

In a related report, a Japanese man was arrested in Bangkok last month, July, for overstaying his visa and for a threat launched against his Thai ex-girlfriend. He was found to be involved in a transnational crime.

Another Japanese man was arrested in Bangkok for overstaying. He was found involved in 111 theft cases in Japan.