A Durban family is appealing for information about 65-year-old Deven Naicker, who was last seen leaving his hotel in Phuket after arriving in Thailand on November 6.
A Durban family is appealing for information about 65-year-old Deven Naicker, who was last seen leaving his hotel in Phuket after arriving in Thailand on November 6.
His daughter Lavanya Naicker, 35, a businesswoman, said on Tuesday, she feared fearing for his safety after losing contact with him a day after his arrival.
Deven Naicker, from Yellowwood Park, was last seen leaving the Ashlee Hotel in Phuket, where he had checked in after arriving in the country on November 6.
Naicker said her father managed to call her after arriving at the hotel, but she had not heard from him since.
“My father travelled for the first time alone but he is not new to travelling. The red flag was raised when I failed to get a hold of him on Saturday.
“I have not heard from him since he arrived at his hotel. His phone has been switched off,” she said.
Naicker said she became increasingly concerned and eventually contacted the hotel and asked the staff to tell her father to call her.
When she received no response, she contacted the hotel again.
The hotel sent her CCTV footage which showed her father leaving the premises and walking towards a nearby market.
“The footage showed him walking towards the side of markets which is close to the hotel. However, there was no footage of him returning.
“The hotel said they have not seen him since that day. They even checked his room, but he was not there,” she said.
She said a tracking application installed on her father's cellphone had also stopped providing updates, with his last recorded location showing the hotel.
Naicker said her father had been looking forward to the trip for years after postponing it following the death of her mother in 2021.
“My dad postponed the trip when my mum passed away. It was to celebrate his 60th birthday. Sadly, my mum passed away a few days before his birthday and the trip never happened.
“So finally this year he said he would go. He asked if I wanted to go with him but I was busy with work,” she said.
She said her father had travelled without booking tours or activities because he wanted to explore Thailand and make arrangements after arriving.
“He wanted to experience Thailand first before he made plans for activities or sightseeing. Unfortunately, we do not have an itinerary or know where he may have gone,” she said.
Naicker is also concerned about the time it took for the disappearance to be reported to local authorities.
“The hotel delayed reporting him missing. They only reported it to police on Monday, when he was missing days before,” she said.
She has since contacted people and businesses in Phuket, and appealed to members of the public to help establish her father's whereabouts.
The family has also contacted the relevant embassy.
Naicker said she wanted to travel to Thailand immediately to assist with the search, but her passport had expired. She has since applied for a renewal and is waiting to receive it.
“My passport is expired. I want to go immediately but the Home Affairs Department said there were no emergency passports. I have renewed my passport and now I am waiting to get it,” she said.
She said the situation had been particularly difficult because her father was hard of hearing and not comfortable with technology.
She said he family was also trying to navigate a search in a foreign country with a language barrier.
“I cannot just show up and ask for updates. I am at a loss for words of what could have happened to him, I do not know if he was robbed. It is all speculation until we find out,” she said.
Naicker said the family was extremely worried, adding that she was an only child and her father was her closest family.
“He was so excited for the trip. I just want him to be found safe, and brought home. I am an only child, so it is just dad and I. I am extremely worried about his safety. Even the smallest piece of information could help us find him,” she said.
She has appealed to anyone who may have seen, spoken to or come across her father to come forward, particularly those working in hotels, restaurants, tour companies and taxi services in Phuket.
Anyone with information that could assist in locating Deven Naicker is urged to contact his daughter, Lavanya Naicker, via email at [email protected].