Chilling moment before Aussie tourist found dead on rooftop in Thailand
WARNING - CONFRONTING CONTENT: An Australian tourist has been found dead after falling six floors to his death from a hotel roof on a Thai island.
Joshua James Connell, 19, was seen on CCTV walking along a wall at the side of the swimming pool at the Paripas Patong Resort in Phuket on Wednesday afternoon, June 30.
He threw his hands in the air and tip-toed onto a narrow white rail while balancing - appearing to try and emulate a parkour free runner.
However surveillance footage shows the young backpacker reached the end of the rail then slipped - plunging around 15 metres to his death.
Shocked locals heard a loud thud and found Joshua on the tin roof of a cafe below the hotel at around 5.45pm local time.
Joshua, from Canberra, was rushed to the hospital but pronounced dead shortly after due to the severe injuries suffered in the fall in the notorious Patong district of the city.
Locals heard a 'loud thunder sound' as body landed
Resident Ning Tanyaporn, who was preparing to open a street restaurant across the road from the fall, said: "I had just opened my shop and I heard a loud thunder sound. I thought a car had crashed or there was an explosion in their kitchen.
"People gathered around the restaurant and saw the foreign man on the roof. He was unconscious so someone called an ambulance. Everyone was shocked that he fell down and died."
Police Lieutenant Colonel Kokiat Boonplod said officers received the emergency call about a tourist who had fallen from a hotel.
They arrived at the scene shortly after 5.50 pm local time and Joshua was taken to hospital before later being confirmed dead.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Kokiat, who is leading the investigation, said: "The deceased fell from the hotel adjacent to the restaurant, wearing shorts and without a shirt.
"The roof of the restaurant hut was shattered and several tiles were on the floor. The deceased's legs were twisted and he had wounds on his head."
The policeman said officers had reviewed CCTV from the hotel and do not believe anybody else was involved in the death.
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Officers are now interviewing hotel staff about Joshua's behaviour leading up to the incident and why he was climbing on the wall.
His body is undergoing a post-mortem examination, or autopsy, at the Patong Hospital. Police have informed the Australian Embassy who are in contact with Joshua's family.
Patong is the most vibrant district of Phuket and home to the province's bustling 24-hour adult nightlife.
Last month on May 17, Australian Billy James Simmons, 22, fell to his death form a hotel on the same island. Officers found drugs and alcohol in his room.
On May 31, webcam model Evgenia Smirnova, 37, from Russia, 37, plunged from an eighth-floor balcony of a hotel in Phuket in the early hours of the morning.
Australscope
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