A 42-year-old Russian man who was missing for 48 hours in Phuket, was discovered murdered in a marijuana farm at a residence in Mueang district yesterday.
Artur Mkhitarian’s throat had been slashed and there were indications of a fight at the location. Police went to the residence after being informed by Burin (last name withheld), the owner of a car rental business, regarding the victim’s disappearance.
Burin informed the police that the victim had rented his car and the victim’s Thai girlfriend had requested help in locating him using the car’s GPS. Burin went to the residence indicated by the GPS and found the door locked from the inside, so he requested the police to investigate.
The police forced entry and discovered the victim’s body with his throat slashed and several knife injuries on his body. It was initially estimated that he had been deceased for at least 12 hours.
The police will reach out to the Russian Embassy for more details about the victim, though they state that the Russian arrived in Thailand in January and his visa was set to expire in late April.
He and his girlfriend initially operated a tour company together, but later transitioned to growing marijuana.
