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The families of two Australian teenagers killed in a suspected methanol poisoning in Laos have been a bit satisfied with the news that eight people have been detained during a police investigation into the incident. Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, both 19, were among six foreign tourists who died after apparently consuming the toxic substance, which is commonly added to bootleg alcohol.
Eight staff members of a backpacker hostel in Laos have been detained by local authorities as they investigate the deaths of six foreign tourists from suspected methanol poisoning, according to state-affiliated media..
The deaths of two Australian teenagers, a British woman, an American man and two Danish women – and reports of others taken ill – prompted warnings last week from several Western nations about the potentially fatal consequences of drinking tainted alcohol in Laos.
The employees of the Nana Backpacker Hostel in the northern town of Vang Vieng, all Vietnamese nationals aged between 23 and 44, were arrested Monday by local police, state-affiliated newspaper the Laotian Times reported.
Part of the investigation has focused on reports the tourists were offered free shots of alcohol at the hostel, where at least five of those who died had stayed. The hostel manager and owner, who are also Vietnamese, were previously detained for questioning by police, according to the Associated Press. The manager had earlier said the two Australian women joined more than 100 guests for free shots at the hostel before leaving for a night out, but he denied that other guests had reported any issue, AP reported.
The victims’ respective governments have confirmed their nationalities and deaths, but many details of the suspected mass poisoning remain unclear, frustrating families and fellow travelers trying to piece together what happened in Vang Vieng.
A statement from the official Lao News Agency (KPL) Friday reported that “the consumption of tainted alcoholic beverages” was the suspected cause of the deaths. But Laos authorities have not given any indication of where and how tainted alcohol might have got into the supply chain.
The bodies of 19-year-old best friends Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones were returned to Australia on Tuesday night. Speaking to reporters at Melbourne airport, their fathers thanked supporters and praised efforts from the Australian government, according to Nine News.
But Mark Jones said the families were still no closer to getting answers about how their daughters had died.
