Yilan police investigating dumping of absconded Thai worker's body

Taipei, May 29 (CNA) Yilan County police on Wednesday said they are investigating the case of an absconded Thai migrant worker who died and whose body was allegedly dumped at a dam this week by his employer, wife and two friends.

In a statement to the press, the Yilan Police Bureau's Jiaoxi Precinct said it launched the probe after it was contacted on Tuesday by the Thailand Trade and Economic Office.

According to police, Thailand-based relatives of a Thai man in his 30s living in Jiaoxi contacted the office after being notified that he had died. The relatives asked the office for help, while providing information including the license plate number of the man's boss.

After receiving the information, police immediately summoned the employer, surnamed Lin (林), who admitted that the Thai man -- whose identity has not been revealed -- died on Monday afternoon.

According to police, Lin said he did not report the death because he had been employing the man, who had overstayed his visa, illegally.

Instead, Lin said that he, along with the man's wife and two Thai friends, disposed of the man's body at a dam near Yinghua Cemetery.

The man's wife, meanwhile, said he had become ill recently and did not seek medical attention because of his undocumented status, according to police.

After his death on Monday, the man's wife contacted Lin to ask for help, and they made the decision to dispose of his body.

On Tuesday, the wife contacted the man's family in Thailand, who in turn notified Thailand's representative office in Taiwan, police said.

Based on Lin's account, police were able to locate the man's body, which did not have any signs of external injury, and are now waiting for an autopsy to determine cause of death.

Police have referred Lin, the man's wife and two friends to Yilan prosecutors on suspicion of abandonment of a corpse. Lin will also face penalties from the relevant agencies for illegally employing a foreign worker, the precinct said.