St. Louis Restaurateur, Amornrat Dan Rifenberg

St. Louis Restaurateur, Amornrat Dan Rifenberg
St. Louis Restaurateur, Amornrat Dan Rifenberg

Amornrat Dan Rifenberg created some popular St. Louis-based restaurants that still serve customers today.

Personal Information About Amornrat Dan Rifenberg:

  • DOB: November 09, 1954
  • Place of Birth: Bangkok, Thailand
  • Social Security Number: 489-98-2306 (Issued in 07-08-1988)
  • Death: February 02, 2002, in Wildwood, Missouri, at 47 years old
  • Race: Asian
  • Cause of Death: Hanging (Disclosed on the Death Certificate)
  • Missouri Department of Health – Certificate of Death – State File Number: 124-02-301483 – Issued February 26, 2002
  • Father’s Name: John Rifenberg
  • Mother’s Name: Pratinrat Saisanan
  • Residential Address at Time of Death: 16967 Hickory Forest Lane, Wildwood, Missouri
  • Spouse at Time of Death: Unclear (Sasimonton Ongartsuttikul or Angela Gay Hill)(There appears to be a misspelling for Sasimonton, which the correct spelling seems to be Sasimonthon Ongartsutthikul)
  • Funeral Home: Schrader Funeral Home, Inc., 14960 Manchester Rd, Ballwin, MO 63011
  • Deposition of Body: Cremation on February 13, 2002
  • Place of Disposition: St. Louis Cremation Services
  • Citizenship or Alien Status: Legal alien not authorized to work according to Archives.com (US Social Security and Claims Index)
  • Autopsy: No

Background of Amornrat Dan Rifenberg

This “Special Report” aims to clarify the facts surrounding his unfortunate and untimely death.  People who knew and related to Rifenberg have multiple versions of Rifenbergs’ life and death.  As a result, we have discovered many answers that create new questions that should help resolve this situation.

The information was obtained from sources that we believe to be reliable.  In addition, our facts are supported by the documentation provided by third parties.  Eventually, we will enhance links to the sources or PDFs for additional supporting documentation.

As a Special Note, we stated in the Personal Information section that it was unclear who his spouse was at the time of death.  The Death Certificate list Sasimonton, but according to the court records, Rifenberg had filed for divorce from Angela Gay Hill (Case No. 2101FC-003348) on January 11, 2002, and the case was Dismissed without Prejudice on July 2, 2002.  Therefore, there is confusion about who the spouse was at the time of death and the purpose of the misrepresentations.

It has been represented that Rifenberg migrated to the United States with his family in 1995 to create a new, safer life.  However, some documents suggest that he migrated as early as July 1993.

Before becoming a restaurateur, Rifenberg was a photographer with pictures published in a book titled “Thai Silk,” published in Library & Learning Space, Bangkok University – 1994 (ISBN 9742020108).  This work has been credited to him by the university and is available ONLINE.

The police report states that the motive for his suicide was possibly financial problems, perhaps triggered by a lawsuit filed by Autenrieth Properties, LLC v Manee Corporation on January 4, 2002 – Case No. 2102AC-00309.  Therefore, at the time of his death, it appears that he was involved in two civil cases:

  1. Divorce Case – Angela Gay Hill (Case No. 2101FC-003348) filed on January 11, 2002
  2. Autenrieth Properties, LLC v Manee Corporation (Case No. 2102AC-00309)

It appears that Amornrat Dan Rifenberg had created the following restaurants:

  1. Manee Thai Food & Noodle – Cape Girardeau, Missouri (according to an article published by the Southeast Missourian newspaper, dated August 10, 1997, listing Rifenberg as the owner – article copy on file).
  2. Manee Thai – Ballwin, Missouri
  3. Thai Kitchen – Maryland Heights, Missouri – there are four additional Thai Kitchens – Florissant – O’Fallon – St. Charles – Wentzville.  They are not affiliated with the Maryland Heights location.

According to some unconfirmed information, there might be more restaurants that we are following up on now.

In this situation, the police report and events following Rifenbergs’ death create concern.

The police report suggests concerns by the St. Louis County Police investigating officers.

Detail of the Police Report No. 2-13373:

  1. Police Report – Saint Louis County Police Department – File No. 2-13372 – Obtained January 25, 2023
  2. Precinct – City of Wildwood, Missouri
  3. Time Received: 16:17
  4. Person Reporting: Pusadee Ueafuea – Asian Female – DOB: 02-01-1951 – Non-Resident – SS Number: Redacted.
  5. Nature: Suicide
  6. Weapon/Object Used: Rope

Investigator (s):

  1. Crews – Saint Louis County – City of Wildwood Precinct
  2. Scognamiglio – Saint Louis County – Criminal Identification
  3. Ruckman – Saint Louis County – Crimes Against Persons
  4. Boercker – Saint Louis County – City of Wildwood Precinct

Concerns surrounding the Police Report:

  1. The alleged wife said she talked to Rifenberg by phone at approximately 11:20 am in police statement #1.
  2. The alleged wife said she talked to Rifenberg by phone at approximately 11:30 am in police statement #2.
  3. In police statement #1, the officer states, “I knelt down beside the body to check for a pulse and noticed that the body was cold and stiff.”
  4. In police statement #2, the offer states that the alleged wife stated she thought he sounded “upset.”  Additionally, the wife stated that she would go to the Dorsett Village restaurant because someone had to be there.  Rifenberg responded, “Sometime you won’t have me.”  The alleged wife told Rifenberg, “No, you don’t do anything.”  Rifenberg also stated that he “put his necklace in the closet.”  The alleged wife responded, “why was tell her this,” to which Reifenberg responded, “I’m just letting you know.”
  5. In police statement #2, the officer states, “A ligature type of mark could be observed around the upper portion of his neck.”
  6. In police statement #2, the officer states, “It should be noted that no suicide note was located.”
  7. In police statement #2, the officer states, “This case should be considered “Active” pending the results of the autopsy.”
  8. In police statement #2, the officer states (on page 10, 3rd paragraph) that reporting person Pusadee had driven the alleged wife to the shopping mall.  Question: why would you go shopping after a person indicates a high level of depression and says what Rifenberg said in point #4?

Work in progress.  Stay tuned!

DISCLOSURE: The information obtained is from sources we believe to be reliable.  Therefore, we do not guarantee accuracy due to the age of the information, lack of data due to the time-lapse, and we have not independently verified the sources’ information.

The information is available to the public; no personal interviews have been conducted yet.

Liste of source (s):

  1. TruthFind.com
  2. Achieves.com
  3. Missouri Secretary of State
  4. Case.net
  5. Ancestry.com
  6. Southeast Missourian (online)
  7. Google Search
  8. Google Maps