The Italian man murdered in Phichit has been identified by his son who met with police investigators yesterday.
Luca de Stefani confirmed that a graphic tattoo on a limb that survived the fire was that of his father Guiseppe de Stefani, 61.
The Italian was murdered near a reservoir in Bung Narang district on Friday. He was mutilated and set fire to in tires.
Police were expected to obtain arrest warrants yesterday for his wife and her new French lover. Both fled after attempting to burn the body.
They are believed to be hiding in a nearby province. Police said that they are still in Thailand – the Frenchman could not leave because he is an illegal immigrant.
Police have obtained other evidence such as tire tracks from the French man’s car at the scene, a five liter can of gasoline from the wife’s house and said yesterday that there had been a withdrawal via ATM of money from the victim’s account that contained around 10,000 baht.
DNA has been taken from the son for comparison to confirm what the police have believed all along.
Recently Bt10,000 was withdrawn from the deceased man’s bank account via another bank’s ATM, said provincial police chief Pol Maj-General Thawatchai Muannara on Wednesday.
Although the French boyfriend had previously been blacklisted from entering Thailand, he still came in via a natural border channel. This means he cannot leave the country through immigration checkpoints without raising a red flag, police said.
Police suspect that another three people in the area might have been involved in the killing or have assisted the couple, Thawatchai said.
Rujira Eiumlamai, 38, and her French boyfriend, identified only as Hamuari, 34, fled following the discovery of body parts partially burned in the ashes of a bonfire of rubber tyres in a wooded area near Bung Thab Chan Pond in Tambon Laemran last Friday. These were later confirmed to belong to Rujira’s ex-husband, Giuseppe de Stefani, 61 as stated earlier.
Thawatchai said police had interviewed 10 witnesses and obtained information that the tyres used in burning de Stefani’s body parts might be from the Frenchman’s rented house in Pho Prathab Chang district. They also learned that a five-litre gasoline container was missing from Rujira’s house in Bung Narang.
(Source:The Nation, Thailand)