Earlier this week, human body parts comprising a head, torso, arm and leg were washed up separately on the banks of the Chao Phraya river in Bangkok and Nonthaburi provinces.
Yesterday, another leg part was found in the river at Pathum Thani.
Preliminary DNA tests on the first set of body parts has revealed that they likely belong to the same Asian male, around 40 years old and over 165cm tall. Black hair, a full set of teeth and a missing appendix are the other clues police have to go on.
The DNA testing has also supposedly found that the man, while of Asian descent, is not a Thai national.
It is anticipated that the man was bound before his body parts dumped into the river as the arm parts found had tape on them, reports The Nation.
It’s also thought he was killed prior to the dismemberment.
While much more is known about the victim’s demography than when the body parts first appeared, police still have a way to go before they are able to fully identify the victim and the circumstances leading to his unpleasant demise.
The police are apparently working with the Foreign Ministry to find the relatives of Li Xin, the Chinese journalist who went missing in Thailand last week when he was trying to seek political asylum in the Kingdom. The Bangkok Post say that the police are keen to conduct DNA tests to see whether the body parts could belong to him.
It looks like Li Xin should be ruled out though – recent reports suggest that Li Xin is back in an unidentified location on mainland China and is being held by Chinese police there.
Li Xin’s wife, He Fangmei, told The Guardian that she had been allowed to speak to her husband over the phone and that he had told her, “This is Li Xin. I’m in China. I’m fine. Don’t worry. I came back to China willingly to face investigation.”
While He Fangmei is sceptical over Li Xin voluntarily returning to China, it would at least appear that he can be ruled out of the Chao Phraya investigation.
The investigation continues.
UPDATE
On Thursday 4 February, AFP reported that that the dismembered body parts belonged to a Spanish businessman who was likely kidnapped and extorted before being murdered.
“I am convinced that within next 48 hours this case will be resolved and that all perpetrators are foreign gangsters — although we suspect that some Thai nationals may have had knowledge (of the crime),” said General Panya Maman, the officer leading the investigation.
AFP are withholding the name of the victim until it has been confirmed that his family are aware of his death.
Featured image is of a longtail boat on the Chao Phraya River and is by Mustang Joe
