Thai police believe Emile Ratelband may have already left Thailand in 2025, De Telegraaf reported on Saturday. The claim adds a new element to the uncertainty surrounding the Dutch media personality's whereabouts.
According to De Telegraaf, the Thai authorities' assessment places his departure earlier than had been assumed. The newspaper did not say where he might have gone.
The report comes amid a series of developments reported by Dutch outlets. Omroep Gelderland reported that Ratelband's daughter fears he is being defrauded. AD.nl reported that a bailiff has placed a lien on his rental properties in Arnhem, with a sale looming. NU reported that Ratelband responded to his daughter's appeal for help by saying he wants to be left alone.
De Gelderlander, meanwhile, published a piece noting that Ratelband, in its framing, still has years to go before any reckoning with mortality.
Taken together, the reports sketch a man out of public view while financial and family concerns mount around him in the Netherlands. The Thai police account, as relayed by De Telegraaf, is the first indication of a possible timeline for his exit from Thailand, though it has not been independently confirmed in the material available.
What to watch next: whether Dutch or Thai authorities confirm the reported 2025 departure, and how the proceedings over the Arnhem properties develop.