WOMAN KILLED FIVE THEN SELF WITH CYANIDE IN CUPS – BANGKOK POLICE

BANGKOK, July 17 (Bernama-dpa) -- A 56-year-old woman was believed to have poisoned five Vietnamese tourists with cyanide served in cups before drinking the poison herself in a luxury hotel in Bangkok, police said on Wednesday, reported German news agency (dpa). 

The bodies of three men and three women had been discovered on Tuesday evening by staff in a suite of the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok's city centre. A first inspection of the scene revealed no traces of violence and robbery was quickly ruled out. 

On Wednesday, police said in a press conference they believed one of the six tourists, two of whom also held US passports, was behind the deaths.

"We would like to confirm that one of the six dead caused this incident using cyanide," said Noppasil Poonsawas of Bangkok's Metropolitan Police Bureau. "We are confident one of the six conducted the crime."

Relatives of the dead confirmed that there had been a dispute over money.

Police discovered residue of a substance in cups found at the crime scene. Local media had already speculated that the substance may have been cyanide.

Investigators had also found the room's door had been locked from the inside. 

The luxury hotel is well known and is located right in the centre of Bangkok, in a very popular area. Nearby is also the famous Erawan Shrine, one of the city's most sacred religious sites.

The case quickly caused a stir in Thailand amid concerns that bad press could damage the country's important tourism sector, which is only just getting back on its feet following the coronavirus pandemic. 

Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin felt compelled to address the case right away, answering questions from dozens of journalists at a press conference on Tuesday evening.

-- BERNAMA-dpa