Mystery surrounds tourist's death in Thailand after naked body found in sea
A 28-year-old tourist was found dead in the sea off a beach in Thailand after reportedly arguing with an unknown man at his hostel. His family, who are now in Thailand seeking answers, are suspicious about the circumstances of his death.
The body of a missing tourist in Thailand has been found off a beach, with his heartbroken family now in the country in search of answers.
Regan Kelly, aged 28, from south London had just started a month-long trip when he went missing during the early hours of Friday, January 3. He had been staying at the Mad Monkey Hostel on the island of Phuket.
His disappearance came following an alleged "increasingly heated" argument with an unknown man. CCTV footage reportedly shows him at the bar of the hostel, where is is talking with a man who also appears to have been a tourist, but wasn't staying at the location.
They reportedly chatted for several hours and then appeared to argue in the video, which doesn't have sound. Regan's sister Laurie Blackall said the footage shows her brother suddenly leaving and going to Patong beach, with the other man following him, Mirror UK reports.
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The last footage from the security camera of a hotel by the seafront, shared to the family by police, shows Regan running and the other man about 15 seconds behind.
Sadly, the following day at around 10am, a watersports instructor found a naked man in the sea, and Regan’s family confirmed it was him, having reported him missing.
Regan’s sister Laurie and his father are now in Thailand to try and find out what happened with the family looking at the meeting with the man in the hostel for possible clues. They detailed how they thought the conversation was getting “increasingly heated”. Laurie told the Mail: “We are not too sure what they were talking about, but the conversation seemed a bit confrontational. There's no audio but Regan looked visibly upset.”
A JustGiving fundraiser has also been set up to bring Regan’s body back home to the UK where a second post mortem can also be carried out. Laurie reportedly said: “The detective said he has worked tirelessly but I just don't know if they want to make it out like it was a tragic accident. Don't get me wrong, it could have been an accident, but something is really not sitting right with me.”
She said that she and her dad had been in regular contact with Regan after he arrived on December 30 in Thailand and so they knew something was wrong when they couldn’t contact him on January 3.
Regan was wearing shorts, a Mad Monkey t-shirt, black baseball cap and a cross-body bag over his chest when he was seen running towards the beach. But when his body was found he was naked and none of his belongings were there either, including his phone.
Laurie said: "Our main focus is getting him home ASAP and continuing to work out what happened, because for us there isn't any closure, this isn't a closed case." She gave a description of the man he had been with earlier as looking like a tourist with a white t-shirt, shorts and having a muscular build.
Laurie said: "I would like to appeal to this guy and for him to tell us what was said, I want to ask why Regan seemed so upset. Maybe he was just having a passionate conversation, talking about life. Judging by what we saw, they could have been having a very deep conversation. But it seems like it was getting heated towards the end - no physical altercations more verbal."
She pointed out how the building surveyor was “very sociable” who would always chat to people and was an experienced traveller but she added that he was not a “reckless party boy”. On the fundraiser it stated: "Regan was only 28 years old and a happy and loving soul. He planned to travel Thailand for a month but sadly only managed a few days. He was an amazing Son, Brother and Uncle. He’ll be deeply missed by all his friends and family." For more information or to donate, click here.
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