6 bodies were found in a Bangkok hotel room with no signs of violence. Police think they know why

BANGKOK (AP) — Should visitors to Thailand be concerned about their safety after six people were found dead in a locked hotel room in Bangkok?

Thai authorities were quick to stress they believed the incident involved a personal dispute and did not reflect any threat to foreign visitors.

Thai police believe the six — four Vietnamese nationals, and two U.S. citizens of Vietnamese heritage — died of cyanide poisoning motivated by a dispute over an investment. Forensic evidence and police interviews with relatives of the dead are said to support their hypothesis.

Here’s a look at what we know so far — and how.

What were some of the clues at the crime scene?

Police were alerted on Tuesday afternoon that six bodies, three men and three women, had been found in a fifth-floor hotel room in the five-star Grand Hyatt Erawan, in the heart of Bangkok’s tourism district.

The six — some of whom were staying in other rooms in the same hotel — had been scheduled to check out that day or the day before. Security footage showed that the group had gathered in one room on Monday with their packed luggage.

The room’s locked front door and security camera footage showed that no one else had entered the room after hotel staff delivered the meals on Monday afternoon.

The bodies were found scattered, some in the living room and some in the bedroom, suggesting it was not a ritual suicide. There were also no signs of theft, the suitcases were unopened.

Police also found a table full of uneaten room service meals, and six teacups whose contents had apparently been consumed. They noticed an unidentified sediment in the cups.

The police also said there were no signs of struggle and no injuries on the bodies, leading them to suspect poisoning as the cause