Parents’ fury as hostel employees who served pretend booze that killed vacationers together with British lawyer are given £95 fines
The parents of two teenagers killed by fake alcohol in Laos have spoken of their fury after hostel staff who served their deadly drinks were fined just £95.
Six tourists, including British lawyer Simone White, 28, died after drinking alcohol laced with methanol at Nana Backpacker Hostel in November 2024.
Australians Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, both 19, were among the victims.
Their fathers, Shaun Bowles and Mark Jones, say they were kept in the dark as a secret court case was held at The People’s Court of Vang Vieng, where staff were handed the minimal fines.
‘The best word to describe it is disappointment,’ Mr Bowles told News 9.
‘For us not to be told they’re going ahead is abhorrent,’ Mr Jones added.
On January 28, 10 people from Nana Hostel were found guilty of destroying evidence.
They each received a suspended sentence and a £95 fine.
The staff could now get exit visas to leave the country after a 20-day appeal period.
No further charges will be laid in connection with Holly and Bianca’s death, but a man from the distillery where the spirits were made could still face legal action.
Six tourists, including British lawyer Simone White (pictured), 28, died after drinking alcohol laced with methanol at Nana Backpacker Hostel in November 2024
The parents of Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones (pictured), two teenagers killed by the fake alcohol have spoken of their fury after hostel staff who served their deadly drinks were fined just £95
Their fathers Shaun Bowles and Mark Jones say they were kept in the dark as a secret court case was held at The People’s Court of Vang Vieng, where staff were handed the minimal fines. Pictured: Holly Bowles
‘To think that the Laos authorities believe that those who were involved in killing our daughters is worth $185 is absolutely disgraceful,’ Mr Jones said.
The families say they only found out about the judgment through other poisoning victims in the UK and Denmark, including Sue White, Simone’s mother, rather than the Australian government.
The fathers said they feel powerless and shut out of the process, unable to enter Laos or take any further action themselves, and are now relying on their government to seek justice on their behalf after exhausting all other options.
In a statement, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the Department of Foreign Affairs has been in regular communication with the womens’ families, updating them as recently as February 5.
‘I have made it clear to my Lao counterpart that Australia expects full accountability,’ Wong said.
‘I have also made it clear that charges should reflect the seriousness of the tragedy which left six people dead including Holly and Bianca.
‘The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is aware that the Vang Vieng District Court sentenced individuals over the destruction of evidence in relation to the death of a US citizen.’
The Nana Backpackers Hostel, where the incident took place
Ms White studied law at Newcastle University before taking the fast-track course at the BPP law school
‘We continue to press Lao authorities on the cases relating to Holly and Bianca’s deaths, and we will continue to support Holly and Bianca’s families at this distressing time.’
The hostel has since reopened under a different name.
‘Six people died in that hostel and they just open it again? It’s beyond comprehension,’ Mr Jones said, visibly upset.
Simone White, from Orpington, south-east London, was among those killed in the Laos hostel tragedy.
She died from a bleed on the brain after unwittingly being poisoned by the dangerous substance nine days before her death.
Ms White was an associate lawyer specialising in technology and intellectual property at the London office of the American law firm Squire Patton Boggs.
After completing her A-levels at St Olave’s Grammar School in Orpington, she studied law at Newcastle University before taking the fast-track course at the BPP law school.
Ms White’s friend, Bethany Clarke, who also drank the fake alcohol but survived, last year told of the harrowing moment they realised they had been poisoned.
The pair had spent the day tubing down the river – a popular tourist activity – before returning to their hostel for a night of drinking.
Ms Clarke has now recalled: ‘We had methanol-laced shots – we had five or six each, just mixing them with Sprite.
‘The next morning, we didn’t feel right, but we just assumed it was a hangover. It was strange, though – unlike any hangover I’d had before.
‘It felt like being drunk but in a way where you couldn’t enjoy it – something was just off.’
Despite their condition, they continued with their plans – heading to the surrounding area’s Blue Lagoon and kayaking down the river again.
Ms Clarke added: ‘We were just lying on the backs of the kayaks, too weak to paddle. Simone was being sick off one of them.
‘Neither of us wanted to swim or eat – which, we later learned, are early signs of methanol poisoning.’
After later boarding a bus to their next destination, Ms Clarke fainted and Ms White kept vomiting before both were taken to a local hospital that Ms Clarke has now described as ‘very poor’.
She added: ‘They had no idea what was wrong. They talked about food poisoning, but we hadn’t eaten the same things. It didn’t make sense.’
Still confused and deteriorating, the group then made it to a private hospital for Ms White to receive further treatment.
Ms Clarke said: ‘They told me they’d do all they could to save her. She was having seizures during dialysis.
‘I was told at one point there was a 70 per cent chance she’d recover. I still had hope.’
When Ms White’s condition worsened, her mother Sue White flew out to Laos – arriving just as her daughter was being wheeled into emergency brain surgery.
Ms Clarke added: ‘Her brain had started to swell and they had to shave her head. The surgery relieved the pressure but caused bleeding and the other side started swelling.’
The results confirming methanol poisoning would not arrive until two weeks later, by which time Ms White had died.
