Heartbroken man takes own life with pesticide

PHUKET CITY: In what appears to be yet another case of suicide, the decomposing corpse of a Thai-American man was on Sunday found in a small apartment on Phang Nga Rd, where he took his own life by drinking insecticide.

Phuket City Police Investigations Inspector Pitakpol Sompong identified the deceased as 60-year-old Narong Yingyongrattana, who was born in Thailand but held a US passport after having lived and worked in the US for many years.

At about 2 pm on Sunday, the owner of Nanachart Mansion on Phang Nga Rd Soi 2 called the 191 emergency number to report a death in Room 211, on the second floor of the four-story apartment block.

Police and rescue workers from the Kusoldharm Foundation had to remove a window pane to gain entry into the room, which was locked from the inside.

Once inside, they found Mr Narong’s corpse lying face up on the bed, next to which were a bottle of insecticide and a small bottle of SangSom whiskey.

The apartment’s owner, who identified herself as a close friend of the deceased, said Mr Narong had been living in the room free-of-charge since August 20.

From the state of decomposition, Lt Col Pitakpol estimated that Mr Narong had died no fewer than three days before his body was discovered.

“I found a suicide note in which Mr Narong apologized to his close friends, but said he could no longer endure the heartbreak he had felt after being jilted by his lover,” he said.

The apartment owner told police she felt sorry for Mr Narong after he was left heartbroken and penniless and let him stay free of charge, encouraging him to try and save up enough money to return to America. But Mr Narong never recovered and remained despondent, she was quoted as saying.

Mr Narong’s body was taken to Vachira Phuket Hospital pending identification by his relatives in Thailand, who have already been contacted.

There were no signs of injury or foul play to suggest that Mr Narong’s death was anything other than a suicide, Lt Col Pitakpol added.