POLICEare investigating whether an
obsession with a Japanese rock star who
committed suicide led a 15-year-old girl to
jump to her death from the eighth floor of
an apartment building in Din Daeng dis-
trick yesterday.
The body of Wachiraporn Kaewsrinon
was found behind the building, operated
by the Nation Housing Authority. Her
neck had been broken.
Wachiraporn, nicknamed Kwang, col-
lected books and photos of the Japanese
star Hide, lead guitarist with her hard-rock
band "X Japan", who hanged himself two
years ago.
"There is no other compelling reason,"
said the girl's mother, Chintana Kaews-
rinon, 38. Chintana said she had recent-
ly refused to allow her daughter to attend
a meeting of Hide fans marking the sec-
ond rear of the star's suicide.
"My daughter cried when I refused to let
her go and became sulky," Chintana said.
Although he says his daughter had an
obsession with Japanese rock stars since
she was very young, Kwang's father is
not sure why she committed suicide. "I am
not quite sure that she jumped from the
building because of that," said Wasan
Kaewsrinon, 43.
His daughter used to do well at school
and was always at the top of her class
until she went to high school, he said.
The last time he spoke to her was at 5 am
when he called to wake her for school, he
said.
Witnesses said they had seen Wachira-
porn exchanging Bt20 for coins at a shop
to making a call from a public phone yes-
terday at 6am. She was seen crying while
making a call. Following the call, she ran
from the phone booth in tears, witnesses
said. The girl was seen running into the
apartment building. Other witnesses saw
her jump from the eighth floor a few min-
utes later.
"Kwang was taking a morning bath as
usual when I left for school," said the girl's
older sister, Wararat Kaewsrinon. Wararat
said she had no idea why Kwang had
committed suicide..
Kwang was a Mathayom 4 student at
Surasakmontree School. Except for usu-
ally being late, Kwang was a good student,
said Arun Dulyakul, her advisor. She had
never consulted him on anything, he said
Kwang didn't have a boyfriend, said a
close friend and classmate. Wasinee
Chareonnpattanakulra said it was the tim-
ing that made her doubt that Hide's sui-
cide was the reason Kwang had taken
her life, because the singer killed himself
over two years ago.
Deputy Education Minister Kanchana
Silapa-archa has shown quick interest in
the girl's suicide. Kanchana ordered the
Education Ministry to help pinpoint the
cause of the suicide.