PATTAYA, THAILAND – A missing-person case involving a young British tourist, an online fundraising drive and a later death discovery in Bangkok stirred unease and mistrust on social media.
Young Briton vanished after call from Pattaya hotel
The 21-year-old Briton Joshua Kershaw had been travelling in Pattaya in early January, when contact with his family reportedly broke off on 12 January. According to a fundraising page run by his aunt, he had made a video call to his mother from a hotel in Pattaya that day, saying he was going to get something to eat, after which his mobile phone was switched off and there were no further signs of life.
Family launched GoFundMe campaign on same day
That same day, relatives started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for travel to Thailand and the search for Joshua, organised by his aunt Jade Kershaw, who published details of his disappearance. The family said they did not know which hotel he was staying in and could not afford flights or accommodation, so they appealed for public support.
Jade Kershaw indicated that donations would be returned to contributors or passed on to missing-persons organisations if the case ended positively, while in the event of death the funds would be used to repatriate the body to the United Kingdom. By the time of reporting, the campaign had raised £9,940, equivalent to about 418,000 baht, and had not been closed, with the family stressing they still needed help to bring Joshua home.
Death discovered in Bangkok hotel and high-risk case
Joshua had originally been due to return from Heathrow Airport on 19 January but did not appear, prompting his family to report him missing to the authorities, and the case was classified as high risk. On 21 January, Jade Kershaw posted an update stating that Joshua had already been found dead in a hotel on 12 January, with several British media outlets reporting that the hotel was located not in Pattaya, as first assumed, but in Bangkok.
Thai social media questions lack of local coverage
In Thailand, the case drew attention after the Facebook page World Forum shared the story on 21 January, highlighting that no Thai media outlet had reported on Joshua’s disappearance or death, despite extensive coverage in Britain. The page administrators urged users to be cautious and avoid premature accusations, with the core message rendered as:
“Wait for official confirmations and the investigation results of the police and the Thai authorities.”
said World Forum, Facebook page operators.
Speculation over information flow and cause of death
Reactions from Thai internet users were mixed, with some asking why such a serious incident involving a foreign national had not appeared in the local press. Others questioned the timeline and argued the family should have been informed of the death earlier, noting that hotels usually retain guests’ identification documents, which could facilitate identification of a body.
A further group speculated that Joshua might have taken his own life and that the hotel could be withholding information to protect its reputation, though there was no confirmed evidence for these claims. So far, Thai authorities have not issued an official statement on the precise circumstances of Joshua’s death.