VIENTIANE — Lao authorities have indicted the owner of a local distillery and the owner and several staff members of a backpacker hostel over the 2024 deaths of six foreign tourists in Vang Vieng, while saying the absence of autopsies has limited their ability to pursue more serious charges directly linked to several of the fatalities.
Police announced the indictments during a briefing at the Ministry of Public Security, identifying the owner of the Tiger Vodka distillery and personnel from Nana Backpackers Hostel as facing charges stemming from an investigation into the incident that killed tourists from Australia, Denmark, Britain and the United States. Investigators said laboratory testing found methanol levels above permitted standards in Tiger Vodka produced by the privately owned distillery.
Authorities said the distillery owner has been charged with selling products harmful to health and operating an illegal business. Those offences carry potential penalties ranging from three months to four years' imprisonment and a fine under Lao law, according to the Danish foreign ministry, which has closely followed the case because two Danish citizens were among the victims.
Police also detailed earlier legal action against the hostel owner and staff, including allegations related to destroying evidence following the death of American tourist James Hutson. Officials said investigators could not legally determine the cause of five of the six deaths because autopsies were not conducted after relatives declined them in several cases, limiting available forensic evidence.
The deaths occurred in November 2024 after tourists became critically ill following the consumption of alcohol in Vang Vieng. Among those who died were Australian teenagers Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles, Danish nationals Anne-Sofie Orkild Coyman and Freja Vennervald Sorensen, British citizen Simone White and American James Hutson. Authorities have linked the investigation to suspected methanol-contaminated alcohol.
The charges have drawn criticism from the governments of Australia and Denmark and from victims' families, who argue they do not reflect the gravity of the case. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia would continue pressing Lao authorities for accountability, while Denmark's Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen expressed disappointment over the scope of the charges.
Lao authorities said the investigation remains open and that more serious charges, including negligent homicide, could still be considered if additional evidence emerges within the period allowed under Lao law.
