UDON THANI — A 75-year-old Australian man and his Thai wife have left an entire community reeling after their once-comfortable lives fell into ruin.
The wife, battling severe methamphetamine addiction and violent hallucinations, has been taken into custody at a rehabilitation center. Her husband, left with only 1,520 baht ($47) and no one to care for him, made a desperate public appeal for help to return to Australia.
Village Headman Sounds the Alarm
Bunthom Sorampha, headman of Ban Dong Dara village, contacted reporters to help the man, who has lived in Thailand with his wife for decades. After his wife’s addiction spiraled, she was sent for treatment, leaving him completely alone.
Inside their once-grand pink home on more than an acre of land, reporters found a scene of disarray. Upstairs sat Marcus, the Australian husband, who lost his left leg in a car accident eight months ago.
From Millionaire to Penniless
Marcus had been married to his 45-year-old wife, Phikul, for over a decade. The couple once traveled frequently between Thailand and Australia, but after his accident, they relocated to Udon Thani.
Having once been worth millions, Marcus says he is now penniless after entrusting his pension and over 4 million baht from the sale of his Bangkok townhouse to his wife — money that vanished as her addiction worsened.
“I don’t have anyone here anymore,” he told reporters. “I’d rather take the risk of going home to see my son and sister than stay here.”
‘I Want to Go Home — Please Help Me’
Marcus refuses to wait for his wife’s rehab to finish. Villagers, feeling sorry for him, have been bringing him meals and searching for a way to get him home.
Three days earlier, locals filmed Phikul causing a scene and trying to undress outside the house before she was taken into rehab.
Embassy and Officials Step In
On August 13, immigration police in Udon Thani took Marcus into care and contacted the Australian embassy, which confirmed they are ready to assist his return.
Mayor Wiraphon Raksamerwong prepared an ambulance to transport him to Bangkok — news that brought visible relief to the Australian.
Wife Returns — and Demands Divorce
In a dramatic twist, Phikul suddenly returned home after rehab. Bursting into tears, she told Marcus: “If you want to go back to Australia, file for divorce first and divide the assets.”
When asked if she still loved her husband, she said no and insisted on ending the marriage before he left. Marcus remained firm: he would return to Australia alone.
Stranger Offers Lifeline
Moved by news reports, businesswoman Supatra Nisanoff from Sisaket — who runs a private business in Australia — stepped forward to buy Marcus’s plane ticket, estimated at 20,000–30,000 baht.
The case has become a sobering reminder of how drug addiction can destroy families and how vulnerable elderly expatriates can become when their support systems collapse.
