Pol Lt Thanapat Somphuwet of the Patong Police was called to the scene, a parking area along the Patong beachfront, at about 9:30am. The body was discovered by 54-year-old tuk-tuk driver Siwanon Yaemyen, who notified the police.
On the driver’s seat of the black four-door Ford pickup, registered in Phuket, was the body of Patong Municipality staffer Wichit Artsurin.
In the footwell of the front passenger seat was a brazier (small cooking pot) containing the ash remains of charcoal. The fire in the brazier had completely extinguished.
Rescue workers transported Mr Wichit’s body to Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket for post-mortem examination. The pickup was taken to Patong Police Station.
Police said that from their preliminary investigation it is known that Mr Wichit had an argument with his wife and left his house at about 11pm on Friday night (Sept 15).
Relatives said they were not suspicious of Mr Wichit’s disappearance over the past three days as he had told them that he was going to drive to Bangkok.
The family members were shocked by Mr Wichit’s death, saying they had no idea he had any intention of taking his own life, police reported.
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