Christina Annesley, 23, from Orpington, in south London, was on a four-month adventure in south-east Asia when she died on the holiday island of Koh Tao on Wednesday.
British backpackers Hannah Witheridge, 23, and David Miller, 24, were brutally beaten to death on the same holiday island last September.
But the early indications are that no suspicious circumstances surround the death of Christina, who had complained of a chest infection.
“We have lost our beautiful daughter Chrissie in Thailand of natural causes,” said her mother, Margaret, writing on Christina’s Facebook page. “We are totally devastated. We love you so much darling, rest in peace. We will bring you home soon. xxxxxxxxxx Mum and Dad.”
Christina – a prolific tweeter under the name ‘Gap Yah Christinah’ – had complained of her illness online. On Monday, she tweeted: “Great, just as I finally make friends I have to shell out £60 for antibiotics and can’t afford to go out with them. F**k everything.”
Christina studied history at Leeds University, and according to her LinkedIn page she was taking time out before starting a master’s degree in English Literature this September. She was a former vice-chairman of Young Independence Yorkshire – the youth wing of UKIP – and a former chair of Leeds Conservative Future.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We can confirm the death of a British national in Thailand on 21 January … We are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time.”
Two Burmese men are due to stand trial for the murders of Hannah Witheridge, from Norfolk, and David Miller, from Jersey. However, the Thai police investigation has been much criticised, and the two accused have complained that confessions were beaten out of them.
