(BangkokPost.com) - Tourism and Sports Minister Weerasak Kowsurat has arrived in Phuket to inspect the scene of the murder of a Swedish female tourist on Mai Khao beach on Sunday night. The deputy governor of Phuket province, Worapot Rattasima, said initial reports point to the murderer being a local who lives near the crime scene. Police are treating this as a very serious case and are doing all they can to track down the murderer. The dead victim has been identified by police as 27-year-old Charotta Hanna.

We got it on the news in Australia on sunday and it was said that she had several knife wounds and was found floating in the sea near to her accomodation after her traveling companions raised an alert when she failed to return at night.

Den

Very sad news. My heart goes out to her family and friends. I hope they catch who ever is responsible.

When I was living in Pattaya and watching the Pattaya News on TV it seemed that there were dead farang daily, most were ODs and suicides (including drinking to death) but many were "foul play" It seems to me that farang deaths are very common in Thailand and I wonder how the statistics add up annually. Does anybody know of tallies anywhere? In terms of foreign fatalities Thailand must be one of the most dangerous countries in the world for tourists.

Most of the tourist are a danger to themselves.
I think also that a place like pattaya attracts the high risk types.
some of these deaths with be drug related and I know that they have had Russian drive by shootings.
Sign of the times all over the world I am afraid

__________________
Kiss
God laughs at people who make plans.

Every time I have been to Pattaya there as been a Farang murder but almost always by another farang,Rusian shootings included!

Den

Agree, Russian mafia is very active in Pattaya and they tend to settle disputes with guns, still I wouldn't completely whitewash the Thais, the crime rate is very high in Pattaya with Thais robbing, beating & killing foreign tourists. I also agree that many victims ask for it: guys that go off into the bushes with ladyboys are asking for a bang on the head, and some drunken farang louts pick fights with Thais, nonetheless, many others are innocent victims. I'd still be interested in seeing some official stats on deaths/murders in Thailand compared to other countries popular with tourists.

This is the latest on the Swedish girl's murder from today's Bangkok Post:

Police issued an arrest warrant Tuesday for a prime suspect in the brutal murder of a Swedish woman on Phuket Island over the weekend.
"This case has really hurt Phuket's reputation," said Phuket Governor Nilan Gallayanamit at a press conference announcing the arrest warrant for Akardej Tankae, a local fisherman who is now the chief suspect in the murder of Swedish tourist Charlotta Hanna over the weekend.
Authorities have also offered a 100,000 baht reward (3,175 dollars) reward for information leading to the arrest of Akardej, 32.
Hanna, 27, was found hacked to death on Mai Khao beach on the island, 660 kilometres south on Bangkok, where she had rented a bungalow.
Police said they believe she was killed some time between 11:30 pm Saturday and 1 am Sunday while taking a walk on the beach.
Thailand's Tourism and Sports Minister Weerasak Kohsurat visited the resort island on Monday to speed up a resolution of the murder case, which has raised concerns about security for female visitors to Thai beach resorts. Weerasak, who assumed his post on February 6, reportedly suggested passing out whistles to all female tourists to Phuket as a means of protecting them during midnight strolls on beaches. Thai authorities might also consider passing out whistles to female visitors to nearby Samui Island, where British tourist Katherine Horton, 21, was raped and murdered by two Thai fishermen on January 2, 2006.Horton's assailants were sentenced to life imprisonment.

It is really upsetting to read of the murders and those of us who visit Thailand know how friendly virtually everyone you meet is so you wonder how these things can happen. The following comments are not meant to be disrespectful to anyone and my sympathies go out to the families concerned.

However, whilst on holiday some people just seem to forget the sensible precautions they would take at home. I know walking on an apparently deserted beach at midnight has its attractions (drink or no drink) but would you walk down the street at home at this time on your own?

Holiday it might be but common sense should still apply. For those who don't agree just look at what has happened recently on Goa.

__________________
Alison

------------
It's Better to Burn Out than just to Fade Away!

Whilst this is very sad for all involved I really have to agree with Alison in that I would never walk on the beach here by myself at midnight so I would certainly never do it in a foreign country. I think that your safety precautions you exercise at home should all be put in place whilst on holidays - and probably ten fold!