Amitpal Bajaj killed in Thailand Phuket Hotel

BBC report

A British man died in a fight at a Thai hotel after telling another guest to keep the noise down as his wife and son tried to sleep, his family said.

Amitpal Singh Bajaj, 34, from London, complained about noise from the next room at the five-star Centara Grand Hotel in Phuket.

His family claims a man forced his way into their room via the balcony early on Wednesday and strangled Mr Bajaj.

His wife said her husband “sacrificed his life” to save her and their son.

The Foreign Office confirmed it was assisting a family in the area.

In a statement Mr Bajaj’s wife Bandhna Kaur Bajaj said: “My husband sacrificed his life to save my son’s life and mine. He will always be our hero.”

Mrs Bajaj, also 34, told how the attacker “barged” into their room naked and “just started charging at my husband”.

“My husband tried to block the man and move me and my son away. As the man was kicking, punching and just, beating him up, my husband told me to please leave and save our son,” she said.

‘Very scared’

Mrs Bajaj, from Southall, said she grabbed the couple’s two-year-old son Veer Singh and fled the hotel room to look for help.

She ran down a staircase and hid under a tree with her son in her arms while calling the reception from her mobile to tell them what had happened.

She said: “I asked the reception to please make sure someone attends to my husband – ‘please give him some medical help, I’m very scared, I’ve escaped’.

“I could still hear [the attacker] screaming. I didn’t want to be attacked.”

An ambulance and police then arrived at the hotel, in the Karon part of the city, and took Mr Amitpal to Patong Hospital where he was confirmed dead.

The Norwegian Foreign Ministry confirmed that a Norwegian citizen has been arrested in Thailand and is being provided consular assistance.