Police in Laos have detained the manager and owner of a hostel in connection with the death of five people from suspected methanol poisoning, including a British lawyer.
Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, was among a number of people taken to hospital following the incident in the popular backpacking town of Vang Vieng last week.
The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) confirmed her death on Thursday.
An officer at Vang Vieng’s Tourism Police office said no charges have been filed but a “number of people” have been detained in connection with the case.
Staff at the Nana Backpacker Hostel, which is still operating but not accepting new guests, confirmed the manager and owner were among those taken in for questioning.
Ms White was a lawyer with global law firm Squire Patton Boggs, whose work involved general commercial matters, and contentious and non-contentious intellectual property law issues, according to the firm’s website.
The FCDO also said it was also providing consular assistance to British nationals hospitalised in the incident, as well as their families.
Four others are currently known to have died, including an Australian teenager, an American and two Danish tourists.
The FCDO said it was in contact with the local authorities regarding the British nationals affected.
Those poisoned in the incident are believed to have been served drinks tainted with methanol, which is sometimes used by disreputable bars as a cheaper alternative to ethanol, but can cause severe poisoning or death.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told parliament that 19-year-old Bianca Jones died after being evacuated from Vang Vieng for treatment in a Thai hospital.
Her friend Holly Bowles, also 19, remains in hospital in Thailand.
Australia said “several foreign nationals” had also been victims of methanol poisoning.
The US State Department confirmed that an American had died and Denmark’s Foreign Ministry said two of its citizens also died in “the incident in Laos” but neither would comment directly on a link to the methanol poisoning that killed Ms Jones.
Thai authorities confirmed Ms Jones died because of a “brain swelling due to high levels of methanol found in her system”.
Landlocked Laos is one of south-east Asia’s poorest nations and a popular tourist destination.
Vang Vieng is particularly popular among backpackers seeking partying and adventure sports.
Officials in Laos have released almost no details about the case, with the government keeping a tight lid on information.
The country is a one-party communist state with no organised opposition.
