30-year-old escaped from the local Ko Phangan Hospital on September 14th after he attended there as an outpatient seeking treatment for depression. A missing person report was filed with the police the next day.

Police on Ko Phangan are keeping an open mind on the death of a Russian man who went missing on an outpatient visit to a local hospital on Ko Phangan on September 14th and whose skeletal remains were found on Friday last.

police-probe-death-of-russian-on-ko-phangan-nikita-grigorev
Police on Friday explored the area in a forest plantation on Rhinoceros Hill in Ko Phangan where the skeletal remains of 30-year-old Nikita Grigorev were uncovered by a dog owned by a visitor to the area who alerted police.

Thai police on Ko Phangan have revealed that the body of a Russian national has been discovered in a forest plantation on the island after the man went missing from a local hospital on September 14th.

Police Colonel Supharek Pankosol of Surat Thani Immigration and the Superintendent of Ko Phangan Police Station Police Lieutenant Colonel Panya Nirattimanont, on Friday, gave details of the situation which has led to an investigation into the man’s death being opened.

Body was discovered by a dog whose owner visited a worker near the plantation on Rhinoceros Hill

The location of the plantation is on Rhinoceros Hill in the centre of Ko Phangan.

Police have revealed that the remains found were in a skeletal condition. An orange tank top with a blue Adidas logo was found together with grey shorts which had blue stripes.

The deceased was carrying a bag which contained his Russian passport which identified him as 30-year-old Nikita Grigorev together with four passport-sized photos and ฿300 in cash.

The body was found by a dog owned by a man identified as Mon who had come to the plantation to meet 46-year-old Mr Somchok Pongphat who was cutting grass at the bottom of Khao Khee Rhino Forest Park on the island.

The man, riding a motorbike and sidecar, took his dog and travelled to Ko Phangan Police Station to report the grim discovery.

Missing person report in respect of the man had been filed by his friend, another Russian on Ko Phangan on September 15th last after he disappeared

Police officers investigating the matter have revealed that a missing person report had been filed in respect of the deceased man at Ko Phangan Police Station.

On September 15th, 35-year-old Pavel Powell Chet Vertinovski, another Russian man, reported that his friend Mr Girgorev had gone missing after he brought him for treatment at Ko Phangan Hospital.

He reported that his friend was last seen wearing an orange T-shirt, shorts and carrying a black bag.

The deceased man had been receiving treatment for depression at the hospital and had attended from 10.50 am to 11 am on September 14th before making an escape from the building.

Police seek to establish cause of death

His disappearance was later followed up by local police who could find no signs of the man on the island.

Police have sent the man’s remains for examination in an effort to determine the cause of death which remains unknown.

They are also in the process of collecting further evidence before determining the nature of their investigation.

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Further reading:

Intimidated Russian couple ask Royal Thai police to join Thailand’s Witness Protection Programme in Ko Samui

Russian mafia gang extort young Russian couple out of $50k at a local coffee shop on Ko Samui

Drug party racket busted on Ko Samui with 47 year old Russian arrested in Immigration Bureau raid on home

Russian man assaulted by protest leader at Pattaya rally leaving his 10-year-old daughter hysterical

Russian couple arrested, charged and fined for having sex in public on a Pattaya beach shown on video clip

Russian faces counterfeit charges after gifting toy money to bar staff while also paying in baht

Stranded Russians offered free food in Phuket as Aeroflot begins to airlift over 21,000 stranded home to safety

About the Author

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Carla Boonkong & Pranee O’ Connor

Carla Boonkong is a magazine writer who writes extensively about woman’s issues in Thailand. One of her key subjects is the story of Thailand’s growing influence in the world and the role played by Thai women in the process. She is now a staff writer with Thai Examiner.com in Bangkok. Son Nguyen is an international writer and news commentator specialising in Thai news and current affairs. He commenced working with the Thai Examiner News Desk in May 2018.