Thai ambassador attends UK funeral for boy rescued from cave

LONDON (AP) — Thailand's ambassador to the U.K. joined others for a funeral service Tuesday for one of the 12 boys rescued from a flooded cave in Thailand in 2018, 17-year-old Duangphet Phromthep, who died this month in England.

Phromthep, known as Dom, was found unconscious in his room on Feb. 12 at Brooke House College Football Academy in Leicestershire, central England. He died in hospital two days later.

His cause of death was not known but police said it was not believed to be suspicious.

The Royal Thai Embassy said Ambassador Thani Thongphakdi attended Tuesday's funeral along with teachers and students at Dom's school, the CEO of Leicester City Football Club and others. The embassy said Buddhist monks performed rites at the ceremony “in accordance with family wishes.”

The Zico Foundation, which sponsored Dom's studies in England, will facilitate the repatriation of his remains to his family in Thailand, the embassy added.

Dom was the captain of the Wild Boars, a youth soccer team in the northern Thai province of Chiang Rai. The boys, who were 11 to 16 years old, became trapped along with their coach when they were exploring the twisting Tham Luang cave complex in June 2018.

All 12 boys were safely guided out of the cave by a team of expert divers after more than two weeks, in a dramatic rescue operation.

British authorities held a brief inquest hearing into Dom's death last month, but they did not disclose a cause of death, citing ongoing investigations and inquiries. Another hearing is expected in July.