Canberra man Nathan Hansford missing in Thailand

[Bazzy]

Canberra man Nathan Hansford missing in Thailand


Missing ... Nathan Hansford. Photo: Supplied

A 36-year-old Canberra man living in Thailand has been declared missing by his Australian family amid growing concerns for his well-being.

Nathan Hansford, who has worked in Bangkok for 10 years as an international contractor specialising in public finance and capital market development, has not been in contact with family and friends since Christmas.

His family said he regularly travelled internationally for work assignments but had always kept in regular contact with his Australian family and friends throughout his travels.

They said his mobile phone had been disconnected and he had not been using his email or social media accounts.

In a statement, the family said it "hopes that Nathan is oblivious to a search across Thailand for him and that he is ‘lying on a beach taking a holiday’."

"This situation is out of character and the family holds grave concerns for his whereabouts," they said.

Mr Hansford was last seen leaving his home in the gated suburb of Thungkru on January 31 to travel in a taxi to Mo Chit in central Bangkok.

Family members plan to fly to Bangkok on Tuesday to help local authorities search for Mr Hansford.

"Thai and Australian authorities have been very helpful," the family said.

Mr Hansford is married to a Thai woman and lived in Canberra before moving to Thailand in 2004. His parents and brother still live in Canberra.

Family members are calling for anyone who has information about Mr Hansford to contact the authorities.

A social media campaign to locate Mr Hansford has been led by the partner of Mr Hansford's brother Hamish, Tara Cheyne, who tweets at @In_The_Taratory.

pls RT: Boyf's sister flying to Thailand on Tuesday to search for MISSING: NATHAN HANSFORD. behaviour highly unusual pic.twitter.com/1xahrf9SVk

— In The Taratory (@In_The_Taratory) March 2, 2014

[Yasojack]

What about his bank accounts?

And no mention of contacting his wife's family either.

[Necron99]

What about his bank accounts?

And no mention of contacting his wife's family either.

Indeed, is she missing too?

"an international contractor specialising in public finance and capital market development,"

Sounds like something a boilerroom guy would put on a CV.

[Sailing into trouble]

So maybe starting a new life with a new best bud. Strange that is employer did not set off an alarm when one of their staff did not show. Or is he a self contractor?

Or maybe the worst happened?

[MeMock]

Way too many lose ends in that article.

[taxexile]

They said his mobile phone had been disconnected and he had not been using his email or social media accounts.

worked in Bangkok for 10 years as an international contractor specialising in public finance and capital market development,

to travel in a taxi to Mo Chit in central Bangkok.

(buses to the n.e. not the beaches)

Mr Hansford is married to a Thai woman

hmmmmm.

[Bobcock]

You can get busses to the Eastern Seaboard from Mo Chit as well.....

[Bazzy]

Australian businessman missing in Thailand

Bangkok: Australian businessman Nathan Hansford is the second long-time expatriate resident of Thailand to be declared missing amid concern they may have been targeted by criminals.

Canadian journalist and screenwriter Dave Walker, 58, who has lived in Thailand for more than 20 years, has not been seen since leaving a guest house in the Cambodian town of Siem Reap on February 14.

Mr Hansford’s failure to contact his family since leaving his home in a gated suburb in Bangkok on January 31 has alarmed Australian business people in Bangkok.

The Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce has appealed for information and posted his photograph on the internet.

Relatives were flying to Bangkok on Tuesday. They are concerned because although Mr Nathan travels regularly, he always kept in contact with family and friends.

His Thai mobile phone has been disconnected and he has not been using emails or social media.

Security guards logged his departure in a taxi from the Bangkok suburb of Thungkru, saying he was travelling to Mo Chit in central Bangkok.

There were anti-government protests in Bangkok that day. But foreigners have not been targeted in the protests and if a foreigner had come to harm it would almost certainly have been noticed and reported to authorities.

Educated at the University of Canberra, Mr Hansford is a debt management specialist who has worked in many developing nations including East Timor and Cambodia. One of his latest contracts was with the Asian Development Bank.

Mr Hansford's wife is from Thailand and he moved to the country from Canberra in 2004.

Australian embassy officials, who handle consular matters for Canadians under an agreement with Ottawa, are investigating Mr Walker’s disappearance after he left the Green Village Angkor guest house in Siem Reap, telling a maid he would return shortly. He left behind his passport, mobile telephone, computer and other belongings.

Mr Walker was working on a movie on the Khmer Rouge, the Cambodian regime responsible for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million people in the 1970s.

Social media campaigns are under way to try to find both men.

[VocalNeal]

A deal gone bad and he's gone walkabout or troppo?

[Necron99]

A deal gone bad and he's gone walkabout or troppo?

Maybe he found out something he shouldn't have at the bank?

Was it an Aussie(?) auditor at the sugar company that got killed when he found embezzlement 10 years or so ago?

[kingwilly]

left the Green Village Angkor guest house in Siem Reap, telling a maid he would return shortly. He left behind his passport, mobile telephone

Seems a bit strange to walk outside without your phone...

[Mid]

Australian found with amnesia in Cambodia
9 Mar 2014

An Australian man who went missing in Thailand in January has turned up in Cambodia, and is reportedly suffering amnesia.

An Australian man who went missing in Thailand more than a month ago has been found across the border, reportedly suffering from memory loss.

Financial consultant Nathan Hansford had last been seen leaving his home in the Bangkok suburb of Thungkru on January 31, prompting Thai police to launch an investigation last week.

Late on Sunday, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) confirmed Mr Hansford had been located in Cambodia.

"Consular officials in Cambodia are in contact with Mr Hansford's family," a DFAT spokeswoman told AAP.

A family statement released to Fairfax Media said Mr Hansford had been involved in a motor vehicle accident and was suffering from amnesia.

"It is time for us to focus on helping Nathan in his recovery," the statement said.

sbs.com.au

[kingwilly]

Weird. I saw that trick on breaking bad.

[BaitongBoy]

A financial consultant with amnesia...Good job if you can get it...

Seriously, I hope things work out well for him...

[The Big Fella]

His excuse ranks up there with the likes of
" I'm sorry sir the dog ate my homework "
Anyone who believes this is how it went needs some help.
Amnesia my arse !

[MeMock]

So many experts….. so little time…..

[wasabi]

The good news is he was found alive, some suggested that worse things could have happened.
If he left his passport behind,how did he enter Cambodia.?

[BaitongBoy]

^From Kuala Lumpur, apparently...

[kingwilly]

Something doesn't quite add up...

[Bazzy]

Questions left unanswered as Nathan Hansford is found in Cambodia



Temporary memory loss sustained by Nathan Hansford following a motorbike accident has raised several unanswered questions regarding his disappearance.

Mr Hansford was found in a Phnom Penh hotel by family members on Sunday after the Australian businessman lost contact with his family, friends and colleagues more than a month ago.

He was last seen leaving his home in the gated suburb of Thungkru on January 31 to travel in a taxi to Mo Chit in central Bangkok. He had not been in contact with family or friends since Christmas.

Mr Hansford’s brother Hamish, who lives in Canberra, said Nathan's amnesia was restricting the family from discovering the circumstances of the accident and how he managed to survive in Cambodia since the incident.

“There were obviously a couple of people looking after him in Cambodia but whether they were hotel staff or not I am not sure at this stage,” he said.

“He is in significant pain as a result of the accident and hasn’t been able to get around as he usually does. He is gradually returning to health and is in and out of hospital receiving treatment.”

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed Mr Hansford’s reappearance on Monday morning, but offered little information on how he came to be in Cambodia.

"We confirm that Australian man, Nathan Hansford, reportedly missing in Thailand, has been located in Cambodia. Consular officials in Cambodia are in contact with Mr Hansford's family," said a spokesperson.

Hamish said it was “no surprise he was found in Cambodia given the scope of his work,” and said it was possible Nathan was working for clients in Cambodia at the time of his disappearance.

Mr Hansford, an international contractor specialising in public finance and capital market development, had lived in Bangkok for 10 years, and working in countries including Cambodia, East Timor and Iraq.

One of Nathan’s employers in Bangkok, Adam Smith International, said he was not conducting business on their behalf at the time of his disappearance.

“Nathan Hansford has worked with Adam Smith International but was not working for our company at the time he went off the radar,” said the spokesperson.

Another employer based in Bangkok, Asian Development Bank, said they had not heard from Mr Hansford since mid-December and had launched their own efforts to find him.

Hamish said the social media campaign spearheaded by Nathan’s sister-in-law Tara Cheyne played a key role in locating Nathan by uncovering leads and information valuable to his recovery.

Nathan’s sister, who flew to Bangkok to locate Nathan on March 4, said the family’s social media campaign had “saturated” Bangkok.

The family have expressed their gratitude to Australian and Thai authorities who assisted in locating Nathan, “especially the outstanding consular staff in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – they are truly a national asset for those in trouble overseas.”

A senior spokesperson for the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Royal Thai Police were aware of Nathan’s disappearance and the “authorities concerned had been working closely with the Australian Embassy in Bangkok.”

In addition, Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce appealed for information regarding Mr Hansford’s whereabouts and posted his photograph on the internet.

The family are now requesting privacy "so that Nathan has the time and space to return to his full health and so that his family can concentrate on supporting him."

[Bazzy]

The family are now requesting privacy

Good luck with that in the modern 24 x 7 news cycle world.

[Sailing into trouble]

" I'm sorry sir the dog ate my homework "

Once had a kid from the inner city slums tell me his dads mare ate his books. So I asked where does your Dad keep the mare? Answer was in the living room. So I had to ask why does your dad keep his mare in the living room? Answer was, without batting an eye. So the stallion in the kitchen won't fuck it! I drove around that evening and sure to god the horses head was sticking out of the window onto the street!

Did;nt pop in for a chat!