TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese man was discovered murdered in his hotel room in Bangkok, Thailand on Thursday (Nov. 16) morning.
The 47-year-old surnamed Chu (朱) was discovered at 10:30 a.m. in a ransacked room of the Niran Grand Hotel in Bangkok’s Bang Na District, reported Bangkok Post. Two foreigners of unnamed nationality were interrogated in connection to Chu’s murder on Thursday, but no charges were filed.
Chu was reportedly found bound and gagged, with signs that he was tortured prior to his death. He is also reported to have been charged in Taiwan for crimes related to fraud and human trafficking.
Taiwanese media reports have identified Chu as the chairman of an organization called the Taiwan Leadership in Action Institute, per EBC News. Chu made headlines in 2022 for allegedly engaging in schemes to defraud people who believed they were donating to an organization, promoted as a university alumni association, involved in providing anti-epidemic safety materials during the pandemic, reported SETN.
Chu reportedly arrived in Thailand on Tuesday morning and checked into the hotel room in the early afternoon. Two Thai women visited Chu’s room that evening.
On Wednesday (Nov. 16), Chu was spotted outside the room while using his laptop at the hotel around noon. Later, on Wednesday night, security cameras recorded several persons of interest, an Asian man near Chu's hotel room door, and two black men who took the elevator to the sixth floor around the same time.
After examination by investigators, it is believed Chu died around eight hours before the discovery of his body by hotel staff, reported Thaiger. This would place his death around 1:30 or 2 a.m. on Thursday.
Chu reportedly told an employee at the hotel’s front desk that he was in Thailand for business, and that he was involved in renovating real estate properties. The employee told officers investigating the case that Chu expressed dissatisfaction with an unnamed business partner, claiming that he had been deceived.
Thai authorities also revealed that in addition to his criminal history, Chu made four previous trips to Thailand, all of short duration. Police are investigating Chu’s previous activity in the country and are looking for several persons of interest, per reports.
