Police in Prachuap Khiri Khan have arrested a Thai woman and two employees over the killing of her German husband, a doctor whose death was initially presented as illness while his body remained undiscovered for nearly a month, authorities said on Wednesday.
The suspects are accused of staging the murder to seize assets worth more than 10 million baht. Investigators say the woman ordered a trusted employee to carry out the attack at the couple’s home, after which the scene was manipulated to suggest natural causes.
The body of Marks Soren, a 65-year-old German national, was found on 19 December inside a house in Huai Sai subdistrict. Police later determined the death was a homicide involving repeated blunt-force injuries to the head and upper body.
Staged killing uncovered after forensic findings
Senior police officers announced the arrests at the provincial police headquarters on 24 December, saying the case was prioritised due to the involvement of a foreign national during the peak holiday period.
Police said officers from Khlong Wan station were called to the property after the victim’s wife reported a strong odour coming from the house. She claimed she was too afraid to enter and suggested her husband had died from illness. When officers entered the bedroom, they found a decomposed body believed to have been dead for close to a month.
Initial checks raised doubts. The victim’s identification documents, mobile phone and four internal CCTV cameras were missing. There were no signs of forced entry or a struggle, but investigators noted inconsistencies in the wife’s account.
A detailed autopsy conducted at the Police General Hospital’s Institute of Forensic Medicine concluded the man had been beaten to death.
Forensic doctors said the victim had suffered extensive skull fractures, shattered facial bones, a broken arm and severe head trauma consistent with repeated blows from a blunt object. Police said the injuries ruled out death by natural causes.
Arrest warrants were issued by the provincial court and executed on 20 December.
Confessions and motive
Police identified the suspects as Ms Nittaya, 45, the victim’s wife; Mr Thongbai, 43, a farm worker; and Ms Naowarat, 50, Mr Thongbai’s wife. Ms Nittaya and Mr Thongbai were charged with premeditated murder, while Ms Naowarat faces a joint murder charge.
Investigators said all three confessed.
According to police, the victim arrived in Prachuap Khiri Khan by train shortly after midnight on 23 November and was taken to the Huai Sai house. Mr Thongbai was already at the property.
In the early hours, while the victim was asleep, Mr Thongbai allegedly struck him on the head with a metal pipe. The victim attempted to defend himself, sustaining a broken wrist, before being beaten repeatedly until he died. The air-conditioning was left running, and the suspects returned to Phetchaburi, police said.
Nearly a month later, Ms Nittaya returned to the house and alerted authorities.
Police said Mr Thongbai told investigators he carried out the killing out of gratitude to the victim’s wife. Ms Nittaya claimed she had suffered long-term domestic abuse and said the killing was planned after she said she could no longer endure the alleged violence.
Authorities said the case has been reported to the German Embassy.
Assets and financial investigation
Police said the victim was a medical doctor who had been legally married to Ms Nittaya for four years, with the marriage registered in Germany. He travelled to Thailand twice a year, staying for around two months per visit.
Investigators said he owned multiple properties in Phetchaburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan, including houses, land plots and a tower structure at the crime scene, as well as cash held in bank accounts. The combined value of the assets is estimated to exceed 10 million baht.
Financial investigations are continuing to determine whether asset seizure was a motive behind the killing.
All three suspects have been transferred to investigators at Khlong Wan Police Station for further legal proceedings.
Police said the swift resolution of the case was intended to maintain public confidence and reassure residents and visitors during the Christmas and New Year period, when security measures across the province have been stepped up.
Source: Hua Hin Today