Body of 31-year-old Thai model, missing for a year, found in Bahrain morgue; family suspects foul play

A 31-year-old Thai model, who went missing in Bahrain a year ago, has been found in a morgue, with her family demanding a probe into her death, UK newspaper Daily Mirror reported.

Kaikan Kaennakam had worked as a model but when her work commitments were reduced, she shifted to Bahrain, where she worked at a restaurant to support her family in northeast Thailand.

The woman had updated her family regularly through social media and told them she had met and was living with her Bahraini boyfriend.

However, in April 2023, Kaikan stopped posting on her social media accounts, sparking concerns among her family. They said they could not reach the model by phone, the Daily Mirror report said.

In January, Kaikan’s family sought help from the Thai embassy in Bahrain to locate her, but she was nowhere to be found despite some assistance from the Thai community in the Gulf country.

On April 18, the Thai embassy in Bahrain informed the family that the body of an unidentified Southeast Asian female had been kept in the Salmaniya medical complex morgue in Manama since last year.

Kaikan was identified with a tattoo on her leg and her cause of death was stated as ‘acute lung and heart failure due to alcohol poisoning’, Daily Mirror reported.

Her family has suspected foul play and is seeking to repatriate her body to Thailand, a process, which they say is expensive without travel insurance.

In an online post on April 19, Kaikan’s sister wrote, “My sister started working in Bahrain around two or three years ago and found an Arab boyfriend there.”

“However, we have not been able to contact her since April last year. Our family contacted the Thai Embassy in Bahrain and learned on April 18 this month that she had passed away,” she said.

She also said her body contained bruises even as the embassy stated that her cause of death was due to alcohol poisoning.

“The embassy in Bahrain documented the cause of death as alcohol intoxication, but her body photos contained bruises. We could not bring her body back because repatriation is expensive. My mum also wants the case to be reopened, and for an autopsy to be conducted again,” she further said.