Man found dead with bag over head

RAWAI: A Frenchman who had been living on Phuket for more than five years was found dead in odd circumstances, apparently the victim of a bizarre suicide. Police named the man as Gay Laurent, 43, who lived in the Happy House estate in Rawai. A friend of Mr Laurent contacted police about 7:30 pm on February 7, saying that he had been unable to contact Mr Laurent for three days. When the friend went to Mr Laurent’s home, he found all the doors and windows locked tight. Pol Maj Jessada Sangsuree, of Chalong Police Station, said that police knocked down a door to enter. They found Mr Laurent sitting on a sofa, wearing only his underpants, with a black plastic bag covering his head. The police found 50,000 baht in the house. Nothing had been disturbed and there were no signs of a fight. Officers were told that Mr Laurent had been suffering from a malignant form of cancer. An autopsy at Wachira Phuket Hospital failed to establish a clear-cut cause of death, but police believe Mr Laurent committed suicide by asphyxiating himself with the plastic bag. His body was taken from Wachira Phuket Hospital for cremation at Wat Sawangarom on Sunday.