Phuket Town landlord found hanged

PHUKET: Police are not treating as suspicious the death of a Phuket Town landlord who was found hanged in her three-story home in the heart of Old Phuket Town yesterday morning.

Saranpitchaya Suwannacheep, 40, was found hanged at her shophouse home in Soi Soon Uthit (map here) at about 10am by her younger brother.

“My sister owned an apartment building near her house. I took care of the apartments and the building and collected the rent for her,” he explained, asking not to be named.

“I came to see her in the morning as usual, and called out for her to open the door. I also called her phone, but she didn’t answer. So I used my spare keys to open the door and then found her dead.

“I don’t know what could have made her decide to kill herself. She lived alone, and in the past couple of months she seemed depressed, but we didn’t know what was making her feel that way.

“She never mentioned suicide. We just had dinner together last night. Everything was fine. She didn’t give any clue that she was thinking of ending her life,” he said.

Phuket City Police case investigator Jariyawat Taencheun said Ms Saranpitchaya was found hanged by a white cloth tied to an extractor fan in the downstairs bathroom.

“We found no signs of a struggle and there were no signs of forced entry or of any items being stolen from the house,” Lt Jariyawat explained.

“We believe she died a little over an hour before we arrived. Her body was sent to Vachira Phuket Hospital to confirm the cause of death,” he added.

“At this stage, we believe she took her own life in a fit of depression. However, we will continue our investigation,” Lt Jariyawat said.

— Kritsada Mueanhawong