A smart boy. You can safely call Stephan Buczynski that. Technical business engineer, who studied at Avans University of Applied Sciences in his home city. After completing his training in 2011, he started his own company in the moving industry together with his friend Sylvano.
The hustle and bustle that comes with it does not stop him from making time for his other great passion: traveling, especially to Thailand. In the years before things go horribly wrong there, he visits the Southeast Asian country several times.
He grows up in a close-knit family and has a good bond with his mother Brigitte and sister Odette. The sadness is still enormous, eleven years after the lifeless body of the 26-year-old Brabander was found in the Thai sea. What preceded that is still a mystery.
Life has stood still for years
“His case was dismissed as suicide at the time. But when it became known and acknowledged that Stephan was murdered, the investigation was reopened,” says mother Brigitte in a video message from the Peter R. de Vries Foundation. This week he pays attention to the cold case. “The conclusion quickly became that nothing more could be done for us. That is unpalatable. To this day, the perpetrators can continue with their lives with impunity, while ours has been at a standstill for years.”
To this day, the perpetrators can continue with their lives with impunity, while ours has been at a standstill for years
Brigitte, Mother of Stephan Buczynski, who died in 2013
Stephan died on January 13, 2013. He had only been in the country for a short time, together with his friend and business partner Sylvano. The journey goes to Phuket, a paradise island full of temples, with beautiful beaches and an extensive jungle. It is not without reason that many thousands of young adventurers travel to the island every year to tour the many sights on a scooter. The evening often ends in one of the many bars, where a cocktail or a Singha beer costs next to nothing.
But Stephan and Sylvano’s holiday does not start off smoothly, to say the least. On one of the first days there is a disturbance when Stephan accidentally bumps into an Australian tourist.
Text continues below the photo: bottle of whiskey in his face
He then lashes out and hits the Breda resident in the face with a bottle of whiskey. Sylvano supports his buddy and attacks the Australian. After the brawl, Stephan is taken to hospital for treatment. The night after he is fired, he is found dead in the sea in front of the luxury hotel Graceland Resort & Spa.
According to Thai media such as the Bangkok Post and Pattaya Mail jet skiers find him around 8:30 in the morning, wearing a black wetsuit and a waterproof bag around his neck containing 5,200 Thai baths and 1,800 euros in cash. He had already died a few hours ago. The case only receives scant attention in the Netherlands.
Suicide? Family doesn’t believe it
In the following days, Thai researchers determined that Stephan had a deep head wound, possibly caused by a boat propeller. The research also suggests that he has an extremely high alcohol content in his blood. According to the pathologist, the cause of death was drowning or suffocation. The police conclude that it is a suicide.
Then things take a strange turn. The Dutch criminal investigation service also conducts investigations in its own country. This shows that there were more injuries than the Thai police reported. Stephan’s skull is broken, just like his ankle. This confirms the feeling of the family, who could not believe the suicide scenario. The investigation is reopened, but all leads lead to a dead end.
Text continues: anonymous tipster calls John van den Heuvel.
When the family travels to Thailand two years after Stephan’s death for a television program by journalist John van den Heuvel, the police are far from helpful. The file is said to have been lost in a flood. CCTV footage shows Stephan walking around busy on the phone just before his death. First with Sylvano, then alone.
A tracked down lifeguard provides even more information. According to him, boats never sail at night, so the head wound cannot have come from a propeller. Moreover, the alcohol percentage in Stephan’s blood would be zero, contrary to what the report indicated.
According to Van den Heuvel, an anonymous tipster says that Stephan has become a victim of police violence. Partly as a result of this, the Public Prosecution Service is conducting another investigation into Stephan’s death, but complete clarity will never be achieved.
New attention for cold case
That is why the Peter R. de Vries Foundation – which is committed to solving old unsolved murder and missing persons cases – is drawing attention to the case again this week. ‘Life has come to a standstill for Brigitte and Odette since Stephan’s murder. They feel that they have not been taken seriously and that much more could have been investigated into the case, also from the Netherlands.’
“The fact that the case is taking place abroad should not alter this,” the organization writes in an online appeal. ‘It is incomprehensible to them that there are people and/or witnesses with more information, but that they do not speak out.’
The information in this article comes from the Peter R. de Vries Foundation, from relatives and from old articles. Tips can be passed on to it Peter R. de Vries Foundation or to this news site.
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