THE family of Luke Miller has vowed to pursue justice after remaining convinced the 26 year old Isle of Wight man was unlawfully killed on a Thai island.
Their pledge came after an open conclusion was reached today (Wednesday) at an inquest into the death of Mr Miller.
Bricklayer Mr Miller's body was found at the bottom of a bar's cloudy swimming pool the morning after a night out drinking with friends.
A post mortem in Thailand found he had suffered head injuries on January 7, 2016 and drowned, but a UK Home Office examination described the cause of death as "unascertained."
Mr Miller, from Woodbine Close, Newport, had become separated from his friends late at night and his body was found later that morning in the pool in a resort on the Thai isle of Koh Tao.
The backpackers' paradise has gained a grim reputation in recent years highlighted by the double murder of Hannah Witheridge and David Miller in 2014.
There had been four other murders of western tourists in the preceding year and Nicola Gissing, the sister of Mr Miller's best friend James Gissing - who was on holiday with him - made exhaustive efforts to get information from a Thai police officer.
Mr Gissing and other friends of Mr Miller, who remained convinced he had been killed, angrily left the hearing as the conclusion was delivered by the coroner.
His family have been supported by the Island-based Lucie Blackman Trust in their quest for information.
Matt Searle, the chief executive of the trust which supports families of those missing or who have died abroad, was at the inquest with the family including Luke's mum, Sara, and his stepfather Mike Cotton.
Mr Searle said after the inquest: "This case highlights the difference in the way cases are investigated in this country and in Thailand where the police are under-funded and often seemingly disinterested.
"I will continue to support the family efforts."
Mrs Cotton said: "We are as satisfied as we could be with the verdict on the basis of the evidence the coroner had before her.
"But there are far too many inconsistencies in the police reports.
"We know what happened and we will continue to fight for justice. Luke was unlawfully killed."
In reaching her conclusion Island coroner Caroline Sumeray said Thai police reports had probably been the most comprehensive she had ever seen from a foreign force but there was no evidence that Mr Miller had either died as a result of an accident, a fight or had been unlawfully killed.