11 April 2024 , 16:53
913
0
A young woman found stabbed to death at a £4million former embassy was at a party hours before the tragedy, neighbours say.
Residents living near the plush pad near Bayswater, central London, say they heard screams and loud music overnight into Monday morning. Police forced open the door of the property and found Kamonnan Thiamphanit, also known as Angela, lifeless.
Her killer remains at large as police continue to investigate the murder, which has "really shaken everyone up" in the affluent area, just west of Marble Arch and near Hyde Park. One neighbour, who asked only to be called Lee, said: "This killing has really shaken everyone up and left us feeling frightened. This is a very busy, touristy area and lots of different people come to stay here for a few days. But we've never known something like this to happen."
Police received phone calls expressing concern for Kamonnan's welfare early on Monday morning. It is understood officers believe the house is rented out as an Airbnb-style holiday let and that it does not have any permanent residents, having previously served as the site of the Ethiopian diplomatic mission in the United Kingdom.
Police are pictured outside the address in central London (SWNS)The home is spread across two floors and also has a basement and roof garden. Another neighbour said: "We heard a lot of loud music coming from the house and it sounded as if they were having quite a party. I remember discussing it with my family and we said that we'd like to speak to the owner but the problem is we don't know who the owner is. There are lots of people coming and going at that property."
Man who 'killed 4 students' was 'creepy' regular at brewery and 'harassed women'
Alan Granberg, who lives in a mews home located behind the street, said on Saturday night three different riders accidentally knocked on his door with food deliveries meant for the house in Stanhope Place where the 27-year-old's body was found. He told Mail Online: "There was lots of noise and music coming from the house and I told the delivery riders that I hadn't ordered any food.
"My house is also (the same house number) and whoever ordered the food couldn't have been there for long and didn't know the area well because they didn't give the right directions. There are lots of homes in this area which are available on very short term lets. I've never seen this woman before and believe she'd only been there a few days."
Yesterday it was revealed two high-pitched screams were heard by a neighbour before the body was found. The neighbour, who did not give her name, said: “I did hear very, very high-pitched screams on Sunday evening coming from that direction. A series of screams. I recall two – I’m very sensitive to sound.
"They were very unusual. There was no other sound other than the screams, then silence after. I was in my room and I thought, ‘That’s very strange’. Then I recall there was a sound from the other side of my house. What could I do? If it had continued I would have stuck my head out.”
The first call to Metropolitan Police is said to have been from Kamonnan's friend shortly after 7pm on Sunday night. The same friend reportedly then made another call two and a half hours later - but it wasn't until the next morning that the Met Police attended at the house, where they found Kamonnan with fatal stab wounds. The dual-nationality Thai-Hong Kong woman was declared dead at the scene.
The force has referred itself to policing watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) with regards to how it handled the first call from the friend, which it says it graded as a "medium concern missing person". The IOPC is continuing to consider the referral and whether it warrants further investigation, while the Met's Directorate of Professional Standards has also been made aware.