A Thai social media influencer has died after he drank two bottles of whisky as part of a bet. Thanakarn Kanthee, more popularly known online as “Bank Leicester”, was offered 30,000 Thai baht (Rs 75,228) to down the bottles as part of the challenge. The 21-year-old regularly took on such challenges which previously included drinking hand sanitiser and wasabi in exchange for money. The incident took place at a birthday party in Tha Mai district of Chanthaburi on December 25 where Mr Kanthee, who had intellectual disabilities, arrived around 11 pm.
During the party, Mr Kanthee was challenged to drink a 350ml bottle of Regency whiskey with a cash offer of 10,000 baht per bottle, as per a report in Bangkok Post.
Mr Kanthee, who was already drunk, accepted the challenge and quickly drank two bottles in 20 minutes. However, he soon became unconscious due to alcohol poisoning and was rushed to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
Man arrested
The police have arrested a man who hired Mr Kanthee to take on the challenge. The arrest took place when the authorities raided the suspect’s house to gather evidence that might link him to a gambling site.
Ekkachart Meephrom, aka “Em Ekkachart” has been identified as the suspect with police recovering a pistol, bank passbooks, mobile phones and SIM cards from his house in Huai Sathon of Tha Mai district in the eastern province.
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Police said that during questioning, Mr Ekkachart confessed to the offence, adding that it was his mother, Supranee Phoonkasi who organised the party. As per Thai laws, if Mr Ekkachart is found guilty of reckless behaviour causing death, he could face a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine of up to 20,000 baht (Rs 50,152).
Internet enraged
The death sparked a barrage of criticism among social media users who questioned the partygoers for allowing the challenge to go ahead. One of the videos showed the partygoers still cheering while Mr Kanthee collapsed to his death.
In the aftermath, a social media post by Mr Kanthee has gone viral where he said he performed such outrageous challenges to earn money for his family.
“I am willing to be bullied and insulted to just get scraps of money from the rich people in order to provide for my family,” read the post.
