The prime minister is being urged to lift the case of a British girl and her fiancé who died from methanol poisoning in Vietnam when he meets the nation’s chief.
Greta Otteson, 33, and Arno Quinton, 36, had been discovered useless on Boxing Day in Hoi An, Vietnam, after ingesting poisonous limoncello that was purchased by Greta’s mother and father as a present.
Ann Davies, the household’s MP, has written to Sir Keir Starmer forward of his assembly with Tô Lâm, Common Secretary of the Communist Social gathering of Vietnam, in London, calling for the case to “obtain the total consideration and assets it deserves from the Vietnamese authorities”.
The prime minister’s workplace has been requested to remark.
Paul Otteson stated he remained annoyed at what he noticed as a an absence of motion in relation to his daughter’s loss of life and urged Sir Keir “as a father” to lift the case.
Greta Otteson and Arno Quinton had been discovered useless within the villa they lived in on Boxing Day 2024, with put up mortem examinations revealing they died from acute methanol poisoning.
In February, police arrested and charged a barman who labored in a restaurant in Hoi An for “violating laws on meals security” by “utilizing used 70-degree medical grade alcohol, together with filtered water, lemon peel and white sugar to create two bottles of limoncello”.
Methanol is a kind of alcohol generally present in cleansing merchandise, gas and antifreeze.
It’s much like ethanol, which is used for alcoholic drinks, however is cheaper and extra poisonous to people due to the best way it’s processed by the physique.
Paul and Susan Otteson informed the BBC final month how that they had been with the couple weeks earlier than they died, celebrating their engagement and that that they had organized for the limoncello to be despatched as a Christmas present to Greta and Arno.
The household stated they’ve been given no additional updates because the barman’s arrest with Paul including it was “unhappy” that he needed to go to such lengths as asking the prime minister for assist.
“I consider the PM has kids who’re at an age the place they are going to shortly be occurring to additional training and probably hole yr travelling.”
“I sincerely want that he and his spouse don’t expertise the ache that we and different UK households are enduring, by way of the horrible crime of methanol poisoning.”
Paul urged Sir Keir to ask Common Secretary Lâm to supply an replace on the investigation and clarify what was being achieved within the nation to cease alcohol poisonings.
In a letter, Ann Davies Plaid Cymru MP for Caerfyrddin, additionally urged the prime minister to lift the matter through the assembly.
“The gradual tempo at which Greta’s case is progressing in Vietnam is worrying and in addition raises issues for the welfare of different British residents who might go to the nation sooner or later.”
“Greta’s mother and father should not solely devastated by the lack of their youngster, who was taken from them so cruelly, however they’re now having to battle a traumatic uphill battle with the Vietnamese authorities to hunt reality and justice for his or her daughter and her fiancé.”
The Vietnamese authorities and Da Nang Metropolis Police have been requested to remark.
