Sangkhla Buri, Thailand – A 19-year-old British man was found alive but exhausted at a temple in western Thailand after spending ten days lost in dense jungle near the Myanmar border, authorities said.
Lost at the border
Lawrence Stallard Honour became disoriented after attempting to cross into Myanmar at the Three Pagodas Pass on September 27, police said. He arrived at the border point when the crossing was already closed and, with little battery on his phone and no money for accommodation, wandered into the surrounding forest and became lost.
Police Colonel Santi Phithaksakul, head of the Sangkhla Buri police station, said: “Lawrence planned to enter Myanmar, but the crossing had already closed.” He added that the young man then “strayed deeper into the rugged terrain” without supplies.
Ten days in the jungle
Survival through a week and a half of nights and days in the jungle was precarious. Without food or proper equipment, Lawrence reportedly sustained himself by eating ants and tree bark. Despite the ordeal, rescuers said he did not suffer serious injuries.
The One Sky Foundation, a local aid organisation involved in the response, confirmed he was physically intact and had not been the victim of trafficking or abuse.
Rescue and family reunited
The teenager was found on October 11 at Wat Tham Sawan Bandan temple in western Thailand. His parents, father Julian Honour and his mother, Gulnara Fattakhova, travelled to receive him. Fattakhova, who is Thai-Russian and based in Chon Buri, had alerted police after noticing worrying signs in his online accounts and suspected he may have been lured.
She told investigators she feared he “spoke online with people and was tricked into going to one of those scam centres in Myanmar. He is a shy boy, but brilliant with computers.”
Dangerous border context
The area along the Thai-Myanmar border is known for criminal networks operating scam centres and for forced labour, which escalated in visibility after Myanmar’s 2021 military coup. U.S. authorities have previously sanctioned operators of those networks, citing human trafficking and abuse in Myanmar and Cambodia.
Officials and the aid group stressed that Lawrence was fortunate. Many people who go missing in this region are never found, victims of organised criminal activity or the jungle itself.
Questions remain
Authorities are continuing to piece together why the 19-year-old undertook the journey and with whom he had been communicating online. The case has prompted renewed calls for young people to be cautious about online contacts and the dangers of travelling to volatile border areas.
The family expressed relief at his safe return, while investigators said they would follow up on leads about possible online lures that may have drawn him toward the border.