Police are hunting two tourists after a naked Thai university graduate was found dead in a hotel room where officers believe they drugged her during a threesome.

The two middle-aged Western men checked in with Kanyarat Wiriyung, 26, before allegedly slipping drugs into her wine at the Cassia Phuket seaside hotel on the tropical island in southern Thailand on Sunday.

Kanyarat is believed to have had sex with the pair but later been knocked out by the morphine - a potent painkiller that can cause drowsiness and vertigo - which was in the red wine.

The Thai woman's unclothed corpse was discovered in the empty 150GBP-a-night room when she failed to check out at the scheduled time on September 15.

A maid banged on the door to remind the guests to leave. When no one answered, she opened the door with a spare key but was shocked to find Kanyarat's dead body on the floor. There was no sign of the two white men, who are believed to have disappeared in the early hours of the morning.

Police officers arrived at the hotel after they were notified at 3:38 pm local time. They found Kanyarat lying on her side with an arm raised and a small amount of blood on the floor.

The white bed sheets and mattress were in disarray while on a table nearby were a half-empty wine bottle, a pair of purple and red wine glasses, and what appeared to be a packet of medication.

Investigators said Kanyarat's belongings were all intact in her bag, and no signs of assault were found on her body. They added there were no traces of a struggle in the room.

Kanyarat's body was collected for a post-mortem examination at the Vachira Phuket Hospital. She is believed to have been dead for around 12 hours before being discovered.

Police Colonel Ekkarat Plaiduang, Cherngtalay Police Station superintendent, said officers were searching for the pair or men amid fears that Kanyarat was murdered.

He said: 'We are currently reviewing CCTV footage and tracking down leads while awaiting the results of the autopsy and toxicology tests on the deceased.

Information regarding the foreign nationals who were with her is part of the case and cannot be disclosed at this time as they are subject to a police search, but they were Western, white men.

'The initial progress is that officers have examined the wine bottle and found it contained a narcotic substance, morphine.

'For the room where it happened, there were two men coming in and out of the room. We suspect they took the woman there to engage in sex with all three of them.'

Officers said that they are yet to find the suspects, who will be questioned over their apparent involvement in the death.

Police Colonel Ekkarat added: 'Yes, it is possible she was murdered. She may have also died from the drugs that were in the wine. It is important that we find the men to establish what happened.'

Kanyarat, who graduated from university in 2023, had celebrated her birthday on September 9, just a week before her death. She said that graduating was 'the proudest day of my life'.

Mourning her passing, her sister NingNing Wanida said: ‘Rest in peace, my sister, and don't worry about a thing. You've done more than enough for me in the past, and from now on, I'll take care of everything myself.

'You are my pride. You lived your life so well, and you were so incredibly strong. Wait for me first. We will meet again. I love you so much, my love and my beautiful girl.'

The once-pristine island of Phuket has been marred by over-tourism as the Thai government implements a visa-free scheme to boost revenue following the barren pandemic years.

Russians have been one of the worst offenders, with locals accusing them of establishing mafia-like groups that control businesses, property and crime.