TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The suspect in a female Malaysian college student’s murder case on Monday (Oct. 17) confessed to killing the victim because of their money disputes, CNA reported.
The 30-year-old suspect, who is surnamed Chen (陳) and currently doesn’t have a job, attempted suicide by overdose in his rented apartment in Yingge District, New Taipei City on Thursday afternoon (Oct. 13).
Chen’s family detected that something was wrong with him, and sent him to the hospital. Before he passed out, he mentioned that a woman had died in a residence near Dadong Road in Taipei City’s Shilin District, per CNA. New Taipei police then notified Taipei police of what Chen had told his relatives.
When officers responded to the scene, they found the woman had been dead for some time and there were clear strangulation marks around her neck.
According to the police investigation, Tsai (蔡), 24, came to Taiwan to study at a university and worked as a social media streamer and model.
Chen was released from Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Linkou on Monday and was taken to a police station for questioning. He was cooperative, asked for the presence of an attorney, and the whole interview took more than one hour, per CNA.
It has been reported that Chen got acquainted with Tsai through Instagram in April, but they didn’t become a couple until Oct. 8. During their courting, Chen went to visit Tsai in her rented apartment and went on dates many times, and they had intimate relationships several times, according to CNA.
Chen claimed that on Thursday morning, he and Tsai were fighting over spending, and that he was initially trying to scare her by smothering her with a pillow, but he accidentally killed her. After that, he left and went home to attempt suicide, per CNA.
Police have collected evidence from the scene, including the victim’s cell phone and tissue paper, which are being analyzed and will be turned over to the prosecutors in order to determine the suspect’s motivation for committing the crime, per CNA.
Police plan to send the suspect to the Shilin District Prosecutors Office on Monday night on murder charges.
