Maid claims French woman found shot dead in Koh Samui left her THB50mil

BANGKOK: A Thai maid claimed that her French madame, who was found shot dead in her luxury villa on Koh Samui, had bequeathed to her 50 million baht of her total wealth estimated at 100 million baht.

Catherine Delacot, 59, was found dead on a bed beside a swimming pool of her villa in Koh Samui on Monday (April 29).

Her maid Natthawalai (pic), from Sakhon Nakhon province, showed police a Line message she claimed her madame sent to her, saying she was leaving for her assets worth 50 million.

Natthawalai, or “Tim”, told police that the Line message stated that her late boss gave her the villa and the two rai (0.32 hectare) plot beside it, a luxury car, some jewellery in the safe box and some cash in the bank account to her.

Tim told police that the message also asked her to take care of Delacot's three kittens and also left two other rented villas to her ex-husband, Vincent.

So far, police have not yet wrapped up the case but they see suicide as a possibility. They suspect the woman shot herself dead after being diagnosed with cancer. A pistol was found near her body.

But the suspected suicide could not be recorded on the house security camera because of the pool camera’s angle.

Tim said she has been serving her French madame for 17 years after being introduced to Delacot by a friend of the French woman. Delacot and her ex-husband travelled to Koh Samui 12 years ago to do the home rental business.

Tim said Delacot initially started a room renting business on the tourist destination island in Surat Thani province before expanding to renting luxury villas.

Tim said she was not at the villa when she received a phone call from a pool cleaner that Delacot was found dead.

She said she rushed to the villa and found her body on the pool bed and another worker found the pistol beside her.

Tim said Delacot had also transferred her salary, and paid the Internet bill, and water and electricity bills and wired her 500,000 baht for holding the funeral services. - The Nation/ANN