PHUKET: A body believed to be that of missing Swiss snorkeller Suter Hanspeter has been found on a beach in the Gulf of Thailand, many kilometers north of where he disappeared.
Authorities near Talay Ngam beach in the Lang Suan district of Chumpon province say they believe the body is that of the 44-year-old Swiss man, who vanished more than 10 days ago about 150 kilometres to the south.
Mr Hanspeter went snorkelling off the holiday island of Koh Tao and failed to return.
It was thought that a body found in the sea within days may have been his, but that turned out not to be the case.
''We are confident that this is Mr Hanspeter's body,'' an official told Phuketwan this afternoon. ''He had a gold tooth, and there is also a gold tooth on the person we found.
''There is a tattoo in the same spot on the back, the orange trunks match the description we were given, and the person was wearing a single fin, as people had said Mr Hanspeter was wearing.''
The local Buddhaprateep Rescue service was working with officers from Lamae Police Station.
The body will be sent to Surat Thani for a more thorough forensic identification.
Mr Hanspeter disappeared at Sairee beach, where British tourists Hannah Witheridge, 23, and David Miller, 24, were found murdered in September.
Police on Koh Tao said today that security camera showed Mr Hanspeter walking into the water.
An autopsy will probably be undertaken to determine the precise cause of death, the officer said.
Authorities near Talay Ngam beach in the Lang Suan district of Chumpon province say they believe the body is that of the 44-year-old Swiss man, who vanished more than 10 days ago about 150 kilometres to the south.
Mr Hanspeter went snorkelling off the holiday island of Koh Tao and failed to return.
It was thought that a body found in the sea within days may have been his, but that turned out not to be the case.
''We are confident that this is Mr Hanspeter's body,'' an official told Phuketwan this afternoon. ''He had a gold tooth, and there is also a gold tooth on the person we found.
''There is a tattoo in the same spot on the back, the orange trunks match the description we were given, and the person was wearing a single fin, as people had said Mr Hanspeter was wearing.''
The local Buddhaprateep Rescue service was working with officers from Lamae Police Station.
The body will be sent to Surat Thani for a more thorough forensic identification.
Mr Hanspeter disappeared at Sairee beach, where British tourists Hannah Witheridge, 23, and David Miller, 24, were found murdered in September.
Police on Koh Tao said today that security camera showed Mr Hanspeter walking into the water.
An autopsy will probably be undertaken to determine the precise cause of death, the officer said.
