Police in Taiwan have arrested a man for allegedly killing his Thai girlfriend and storing her body in a freezer at his workplace, after her remains were found in Taichung, Taiwanese media reported.
The 43-year-old Taiwanese man, identified only as Wu, was formally detained on Saturday after the Taichung District Court approved prosecutors' request, citing the severity of the alleged crime and the risk that he could flee or destroy evidence.
The case came to light after Taiwanese friends of the 36-year-old Thai woman reported her missing to police in Taipei's Wanhua district on Friday, according to Taiwanese media.
The woman had arrived in Taiwan on September 2 and was staying at a hotel in the Ximending area of Taipei. She was due to return to Thailand on September 14 but failed to do so.
Police reviewing surveillance footage from around the hotel identified Wu as a suspect. He was seen entering the hotel on September 12 and leaving early the following morning carrying a large suitcase, which he put in the trunk of his car before driving to Taichung, Taiwanese media reported.
Police and prosecutors later searched Wu's workplace, where he was employed in an administrative position at a technology company, and found the woman's body inside a small freezer.
Initial findings indicated that she had been strangled, according to Taiwanese media.
Wu reportedly told investigators that he became angry after the woman asked to end their relationship and claimed that he had killed her accidentally during a physical altercation.
Taiwanese media, citing police sources, reported that Wu had bought the freezer and suitcase in early September, raising suspicions that the killing may have been planned.
The Taichung District Prosecutors Office said it received a tip-off from Taipei police on Friday evening and coordinated with them to arrest Wu later that night.
Police said Wu had met the woman while travelling in Thailand and that they had been in a relationship for about a year.
