Leo Putt and Tar Barbie revealed the moment they heard the bad news of Ray MacDonald's death, suspecting he had been overworking and resting too little. They urged waiting for the official cause from medical authorities and recounted the moment Ray MacDonald's wife called to inform them of the tragedy.
At 07:33 on 19 Aug, Police Lieutenant Nithi Suwalak, deputy investigator at Prawet Police Station, received a report of a man's death inside a residence in a village at Soi Pattanakarn 61, Yak 23, Suan Luang District, Bangkok. He notified his superiors and went to the scene with Police Colonel Thotsaphon Ampaipipatkul, chief of Prawet Police Station, investigation officers, forensic experts, forensic doctors from Police General Hospital, and Poh Teck Tung Foundation volunteers.
The scene was a two-story detached house. On the ground floor next to a sofa, the body of Ray MacDonald, 49, a Thai-Scottish actor, was found lying rigid on his back with bruising and blood spots, wearing a black short-sleeve T-shirt and shorts. No signs of assault were found. He was estimated to have been dead for at least five hours.
During questioning, Mrs. Sarinya MacDonald, the wife, said at 06:20 she went to wake her husband to take their child to school, as it was the first day of term. She found him sleeping on the sofa on the first floor in front of the TV. Despite trying to wake him, he did not respond and his body was stiff with bruises. She laid him on the floor and immediately called the Erawan Center medical team. Upon arrival, they confirmed he had been dead for some time.
Reviewing CCTV inside the house showed he had been watching TV and then collapsed asleep on the sofa at 00:12. They suspect lack of rest. His wife said he probably was very tired and wanted to retire. She initially thought he was pretending to sleep because he often played such pranks when she came down to wake him. He had no known chronic illnesses. Tomorrow, they planned to collect his body from the Police General Hospital's forensic institute for a memorial at Wat Yang, On Nut, with the schedule to be announced later.
Later, Leo Putt, 50, and Tar Barbie (Phaopon Thephasdin Na Ayudhya), 52, came to Ray MacDonald's home after hearing the news. The atmosphere was filled with sorrow and shock over the sudden death.
Leo Putt revealed that around 07:00 that morning, Ray's wife called him, which was unusual as she rarely called early; usually Ray himself was the early riser. She was crying and at first he thought they had a marital argument, but she informed him that Ray had passed away. Leo said he was shocked by the sudden event. He speculated it was due to lack of rest. Ray rarely showed tiredness and was always active, loving to travel, which was part of his life.
He added that this lifestyle might have caused insufficient rest or overwork. As far as he knew, Ray had no chronic illnesses, or if he did, he kept it private. He admitted being very shocked, noting that sometimes people have hidden illnesses they don't know about. Without health checks, it can be too late when symptoms appear. During breaks from traveling, the family spent time apart so Ray could be with their child, especially as it was the first day of school.
Regarding the cause of death, he wanted to wait for medical opinions. From what he saw, Ray appeared to have just fallen asleep. His main concern was for the family, then work. He said, “Ray’s journey is not over; it’s just changed form. He will continue traveling in a different way, as someone curious about the world. Since he has seen so much on this earth, he now wants to see the next world. I want to tell friends to travel safely, be lucky, and get some rest.”