Reports suggest that the wound was either self-inflicted or an accident. A small packet of dried marijuana leaves and a lighter found by police at the scene is thought not to be linked to the man’s behaviour or how he sustained the injury.
A Norwegian man was removed from a hotel bedroom in South Pattaya late on Wednesday night after what appears to be an act of self-harm. The man was found by horrified hotel workers who broke into the room with a stab wound to the abdomen which was treated by paramedics before he was removed to hospital near midnight.
A 54-year-old Norwegian man was rescued from his hotel room late on Wednesday after apparently inflicting a stab wound on himself in the abdomen according to reports.
Frank Gjesvold, from Oslo, was rushed to Pattaya Memorial Hospital just minutes after police and paramedics burst into his 4th-floor hotel bedroom in the resort city in Chonburi province following urgent calls from staff at the hotel.
Hotel staff heard Mr Gjesvold screaming but then they knocked on his room door with no response
Earlier, concerned staff had forced their way into the room after initially hearing Mr Gjesvold screaming and crying out.
They had responded to this by knocking on the door of Room 409 but were greeted by silence from within.
When they opened the door using a master key, they were shocked to find blood splatters on the ground and the older man lying wounded in the luxury hotel room.
It is understood that Mr Gjesvold had been a guest at the hotel for the past 6 months located in South Pattaya.
Police Colonel Yutthana Ruangsaku, Deputy Crime Suppression Chief in the city, confirmed that the Norwegian man was found with a stab wound while police also discovered a small packet of dried marijuana leaves together with a lighter.
Discovery of marijuana leaves in the room thought not to be related to the man’s behaviour and injury
It is not clear if the discovery of the marijuana leaves in the man’s room has anything to do with his behaviour.
It is thought unlikely. The incident may have been an accident or an act of self-harm caused by depression.
Police are investigating the incident to establish, in particular, if the Norwegian man intended to harm himself.
As well as on the floor of the room there were also heavy traces of blood on the bed where the man was lying before hotel staff entered the room in response to the emergency.
Self-harm and suicide among foreigners in Thailand’s tourist hotspots such as Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Pattaya has been an issue of serious concern now for decades.
Mysterious death of Australian man found on Saturday in Pattaya ruled as suicide, case closed by local police
Marijuana leaves are known to have a very low level of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the psychoactive ingredient as opposed to the buds of the plant which are more regularly used by recreational marijuana or cannabis users.
In some cultures, the cannabis leaves are smoked but it is also known that this can leave the person imbibing the smoke with a severe headache.
No traces of violence found in the room
Investigating officers on Wednesday night confirmed that they found no traces of violence in Mr Gjesvold’s hotel room.
Cannabis is currently legal in Thailand and is now openly on sale in some Bangkok street markets even as police move to enforce new regulations to curb the widespread use of the drug with a proposed law still delayed within the parliamentary system which would more strictly regulate marijuana use and make its recreational use more difficult.
The law is expected to be passed by August.
Until then, police have confirmed that its use by adults over 20 is legal.
They have even confirmed that the open public sale of marijuana for recreational use is also legal if the seller had applied for and been granted a valid licence from local authorities.
Growing public and official concern over current unrestricted adult recreational use of cannabis
However, there is growing public concern about the more widespread use of the substance with top medical officials expressing disapproval of its use for recreational purposes and in particular among younger people.
US study in 2019 among 4,000 people shows that cannabis kills and raises the risk of heart disease as well as adverse mental health effects
A recent survey showed that 72% of the Thai public had reservations about the move to deregulate and legalise the substance even though over half approved of the move as a commercial boost for struggling farmers.
The same survey confirmed that only 10% of people living in Thailand use it for recreational purposes with 7% using it for medicinal purposes.
Top official opposes the drug’s recreational use
On Thursday, Dr Kiattiphum Wongrajit, the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Public Health, the government ministry which championed the change of the laws concerning cannabis to allow its use for medicinal purposes, said that his ministry does not support the consumption of cannabis for recreational purposes.
However, he said it was up to civilian authorities to enforce the laws that are currently available to protect the public.
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