Thai Police have detained a 29-year-old Spanish national, Daniel Sancho Bronchalo, after human remains of his Colombian friend, Edwin Arrieta Arteaga, were discovered at a landfill on Koh Phangan, a popular southern island in Thailand known for its Full Moon parties. The Spanish man denies any involvement in the disappearance of his friend’s remains.
The investigation began when Mr. Sancho reported Mr. Arrieta missing to the Koh Phangan police station on Thursday night. Prior to this, trash collectors had uncovered body parts, including a sawed-off pelvis and intestines weighing approximately five kilograms, inside a fertiliser sack at a waste dump on the island. Further human body pieces were found in a black plastic bag at the same location the following day, including two legs, a black T-shirt, a pair of shorts, and red boxer shorts.
The police, along with forensic officers and medical personnel from Koh Phangan Hospital, assumed that these body parts belonged to Mr. Arrieta. They then called in Mr. Sancho for questioning, with Pol Lt Col Surapong Thanomjit, the commissioner of Provincial Police Region 8, accompanying him.
The investigation revealed that both Mr. Sancho and Mr. Arrieta knew each other from previous encounters and had planned to meet up on Koh Phangan. Mr. Arrieta had reserved a hotel stay on the island from July 31 to August 3. On July 31, Mr. Sancho arrived at the hotel and checked into his room before Mr. Arrieta.
Mr. Sancho reported that he went to pick up a friend from a pier on Koh Phangan around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. They then went to a restaurant and later to Rin beach, which was near their accommodation. Mr. Sancho claimed that Mr. Arrieta disappeared after midnight on Wednesday, and he had no knowledge of his whereabouts.
During the initial investigation, it was discovered that Mr. Sancho was staying in the hotel room reserved by Mr. Arrieta. Additionally, he had reserved another room at a hotel near Salad beach for Tuesday and Wednesday. He was seen driving Mr. Arrieta to a restaurant near the second hotel he had booked, but no one reported seeing Mr. Arrieta after Wednesday night.
The inquiry also revealed that on Tuesday evening, the Spanish man purchased various items from a convenience store, including a knife, rubber gloves, a kitchen sponge, a cleaning pad, a bottle of cleaning agent, and rubbish bags.
Upon searching Mr. Sancho’s room, the police found that the refrigerator, bathroom, and kitchen sink had been thoroughly cleaned. Bloodstains, tissue, fat, and hair were found in the room’s drain, and samples were taken for forensic testing.
The investigation into the disappearance and the human remains found at the landfill is ongoing, as authorities work to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the case.
