Grace Taylor: Police Detain Missing Brit At Thai Airport After Mother's Appeal

Police Detain Missing Brit Grace Taylor After She 'Walks Away Blowing A Whistle'
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The mother of a girl who was detained at a Thai airport on Tuesday after going missing has spoken of her relief that "our Gracie has been found".

Grace Taylor was located at Krabi Airport and detained after she walked away from police while blowing a whistle. Her mother Sam Taylor had raised the alarm after her daughter failed to make contact with her family since February 16 while she was backpacking in Pattaya.

After Grace was found, Taylor posted a message on Facebook saying "We don't as yet know what has happened.

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The mother of Grace Taylor has made a desperate appeal for help finding her daughter who is missing in Thailand

"We are working to get her home safely. Thank you all so very much for your efforts and kind words of encouragement and thank goodness for the power of social media over the last few days plus the help of the Police and local authorities in Thailand."

Grace, 21, was detained after refusing to speak to officers and trying to walk away while blowing a whistle when they approached her.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Jetsada Chanpoom is quoted in the Mirror as saying: "Tourist police officers and immigration officials have found Grace Taylor at Krabi airport.

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Grace was said to have been "very stressed and frightened"

"She has spoken to embassy officials and we expect she will be leaving Thailand. She is feeling sick but we do not believe there was any crime involved."

Dorset Police said it was contacted by Interpol overnight and had been told Grace was being cared for by an officer from the tourist police.

A spokesman added: "Her family have been informed and arrangements are under way to bring Grace back to England."

Grace called her mother from Ao Nang, in Krabi province, on Monday and sounded "very stressed and frightened saying that people were trying to hurt her", Taylor said in a post on Facebook.

The family, from Swanage, Dorset, booked her a flight from Krabi airport but Grace did not board the plane even though she was believed to have arrived there between 8.30pm and 9.30pm local time.

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Grace was booked a ticket from Krabi, but missed her flight

In a post on Monday, Taylor said: "Grace contacted us at 11am today from Ao Nang, she was very stressed and frightened saying that people were trying to hurt her and were following her and she wanted to come home.

"We calmed her down and booked her a flight from Krabi tonight but she apparently reached the airport but didn't catch her flight and has gone missing again.

"We are desperately worried, all previous backpacker sightings have reported that she is disorientated and not in a good mental state."

Taylor has reported her missing to Dorset Police and the Foreign Office (FO) and appealed for backpackers in the country to help locate Grace.

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Sam Taylor's Facebook plea for help finding her daughter

A family member would be flying to Thailand to join the search and bring her home, Taylor added.

An FO spokesman said: "We are in touch with local authorities about a British national who was reported missing in Thailand and are providing consular assistance to the family."

In December British traveller Jordan Jacobs caused alarm after calling his parents and telling them he was being held against his will. The 21-year-old was located days later and when asked about the panic he had caused said: "Perhaps I was having too much fun."