Spanish tourist confesses to killing, dismembering his Colombian lover, police say
A Spanish national has pleaded guilty to the murder and dismemberment of his lover, a Colombian doctor, in Surat Thani province’s Koh Pha Ngan, after hours of tense interrogation on Saturday.
Daniel Sancho Bronchalo, 29, was apprehended by a local police officer on Friday.
Initially, he had told officers at Koh Pha Ngan Police Station that his 44-year-old Colombian lover, Edwin Arrieta Arteaga, had disappeared, police said.
Bronchalo later confessed to killing Artega, dismembering his body, and dumping some of its pieces in a landfill on the island and the rest at sea.
Surat Thani police chief Maj-General Saranyu Chamnanrat said the suspect confessed to the crime after intense questioning and after being confronted with evidence.
The suspect’s motive is unclear. Police are continuing to investigate and will ask the Koh Samui Provincial Court to issue an arrest warrant for Sancho.
According to a local report, Koh Pha Ngan police found human remains in a garbage bag in the cement yard of the island's Municipal Solid Waste Disposal Centre on August 3.
More body pieces were found the next day.
A team of investigators concluded that Bronchalo killed and dismembered Arteaga.
Maj-General Surachate Hakparn, deputy commissioner-general of the Royal Thai Police, said officers are now in the process of revoking Bronchalo's visa and forensic officers are confirming the identity of the deceased from the parts of his body that were found.
