A Thai elephant trainer has been charged by authorities in connection with the killing of a 22-year-old Spanish tourist who died after being injured by an elephant at a sanctuary 490 miles south of the capital, Bangkok. File photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo
Jan. 8 (UPI) — Thai authorities arrested an elephant handler in the case of a 22-year-old Spanish tourist who died after being injured by an elephant at a sanctuary in the south of the country. Police charged Theerayut Inthaphudkij, 38, with negligence causing death after the incident at Koh Yao Elephant Care Center, according to a statement by the Phang Nga Tourism and Sports Office. Advertisement
Blanca Ojanguren Garcia sustained a head injury as she was bathing a 45-year-old female elephant at the center that charges tourists, including children as young as four, between $9 and $21 an hour to help out with caring for elephants. She was taken to the hospital where she later died.
Valladolid in northern Spain, Garcia’s hometown, confirmed the law student’s death, with Mayor Jesus Julio Carnero saying she had attended a bilingual charter school in the city.
