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The devastated parents of a female who died beside her partner after ingesting contaminated limoncello say they are desperate for accountability.

Greta Otteson, thirty-three, and the man, 36, were found dead on Boxing Day in Hoi An, the Southeast Asian country, as a consequence of methanol poisoning.

A short time earlier, the woman had messaged her family, her loved ones, to say she had "an extremely bad ill feeling possible" and was going to rest, but she did not awaken.

A bartender who allegedly produced the limoncello was detained in the winter month and is being detained while under investigation. Her relatives state they have had minimal communication from the authorities.

"This is about answers," said Greta's dad, adding: "The family can't move on."

Methanol is a form of alcohol commonly used in cleaning products, energy sources and engine fluids.

It is comparable to ethanol, which is safe for cocktails, but it is more affordable and far deadlier to individuals because of the way it is processed by the organism.

In the parents' home in their community, Carmarthenshire, a pair of urns rest beside the stairs – the first has a soft toy sitting on top, the second, a plush bear.

These hold the couple's ashes.

"They sit in the lounge with us," explained the father, a retired professional. "We want to give them a final resting place, but we believe we can't do that until we get a clear answer."

Greta had been residing in the coastal town with Arno, her South African partner of nearly 24 months, where the pair managed a guesthouse offering units to tourists.

She was an single daughter, described by her dad as "wonderful", a "free spirit" and a "dedicated individual" who studied in Cardiff, France and the United States.

In late 2024, the father, seventy-one and the mother, in her seventies, had journeyed to Vietnam, encountering Arno for the very first moment, and the couple announced their engagement soon afterwards.

"The trip felt beautiful – we were so content," said Paul, who referred to his daughter's partner as "quiet but highly intelligent" and someone he "had hoped to have as a family member."

During their visit, the group enjoyed meals a multiple times at an Italian eatery, a well known dining spot, where they liked the cuisine and were given free servings of homemade specialty drink at the end.

Some weeks later, when the parents had departed the country and were attempting to think of a seasonal offering for their daughter and her partner, they remembered the venue and its products of their specialty drink and chose to purchase a number of them for transport to their daughter's house.

That choice was a decision that would have the most devastating outcomes.

After hours of drinking the beverage, their daughter contacted her relatives on the holiday to say she had a awful hangover and was seeing vision issues but brushed off recommendations from her parents, and a acquaintance who had stopped by, to seek a doctor's opinion.

The pair were discovered deceased in different rooms of the property on the following day. Hours later, Paul and Susan were on a journey to Southeast Asia.

Paul remembered the intense public theories that ensued as well as the challenge to manage the logistics of dealing with a tragedy in a overseas country.

It was a short time before post mortem examinations revealed the couple had passed away from lethal chemical consumption.

During the winter month, investigators detained a bartender who served in a eatery in Hoi An for "breaking regulations on consumable products" by "utilizing repurposed high-proof non-consumable ethanol, combined with tap water, fruit skin and granulated sugar to produce multiple containers of limoncello."

According to local legal codes, the violation could carry a maximum jail time of multiple years.

Many of individuals are harmed by methanol each year in South East Asia, based on reports from non-profit organizations.

Their deaths came mere a short time after six people died of methanol poisoning in a neighboring country, a territory which is next to Vietnam.

The parents were told legal processes take a long time in the region, with the possibility of a suspect being detained for a extended period before being indicted or freed.

They shared the delay for resolution was becoming extremely difficult.

"The family just want accountability," emphasized the father. "They can't move on. Greta's mother asks daily when we wake up, 'any updates? Have there been news?' I have to say 'no, no news yet'."

"This situation is about answers," he noted. "A resolution for us would be naming the parties at fault and charging them."

The couple said they also felt "deeply disturbed" the restaurant where they had requested the beverage was still open and had not publicly apologised.

"The management just carried on as if no incident has occurred," said Paul.

For the family, the grief is still very fresh.

Greta's dad