A 49-year-old Indian tourist was found dead on May 17, 2025, near Ao Som on the southern coast of Koh Samet in Thailand, after his body, partially decomposed and with the head wrapped in a plastic bag tied by a luggage strap, was discovered among shoreline rocks.
Authorities in Rayong Province received the alert late in the afternoon when a local resident reported seeing a body lodged in the rocks. The man, later identified as Mr Kakumanu, had been staying at a resort on Koh Samet and was previously reported missing after resort staff lost contact with him. The body appeared to have been carried ashore by the tide and had no identification or personal belongings.
Rescue teams from the Sawang Phra Kuson Foundation, along with Koh Samet police officers, responded to the scene. An initial inspection by forensic experts and a coroner suggested the man had been dead for around two days, and the unusual manner in which the head was bound has led police to consider the death suspicious.
The body was transferred to the mainland at Ban Phe for further examination as part of the investigation, which remains ongoing. Authorities are collecting evidence and appealing for any information related to the case.
Police officials and local rescue workers who responded to the discovery included personnel from the island’s patrol unit and staff from the resort where Mr Kakumanu had been staying.
