When Chaiphol Wipha, 44, arrived at the Royal Thai Police headquarters late Wednesday morning, he was accompanied by his wife. In May 2020, he was charged with the murder of his niece Orawan “Nong Chompoo” Wongsricha.
On Tuesday, the Mukdahan provincial court issued an arrest warrant for him on first allegations of depriving a child of parental care, leaving a kid under the age of nine in a manner that resulted in her death, and tampering with a body to influence an autopsy and police investigation.
Pol Gen Suwat Jangyodsuk, the national police commander, confirmed the three accusations against Mr Chaiphol and said he would be transferred to the Kok Toom police station in Mukdahan for questioning.
He said police were assured with there evidence “It is a murder case, ” he said.
On May 14, last year, Nong Chompoo was discovered dead and nude on a mountain in Phu Pha Yon National Park, a few kilometres from her home in a hamlet in Dong Luang district. The arrest warrant was based on evidence from clothing, shoes, three hairs whose owner was recognised through DNA analysis, 36 clipped hairs from the girl, other forensic evidence, and witness testimony, according to police sources.
Mr Chaiphol’s residence in Ban Kok Kork village, tambon Kok Toom, Dong Luang district, Mukdahan, was searched by authorities on Wednesday morning, but he was not present.
The girl went missing from her house in Baan Kok Kork on May 11, 2020, and has not been seen since. The parents left their oldest daughter to watch after her younger sister while they ran an errand.
She informed authorities that her younger sister had just walked away and vanished. Nong Chompoo was discovered dead and nude in a jungle on Phu Lek Fai mountain, roughly two kilometres from her house, after a four-day search.
Physical abuse and sexual violation were discovered during an autopsy. The girl’s ability to walk up the slope on her own was questioned by police. They assumed the perpetrator was close enough to the family for the girl to consent to his picking her up without objection.
The case caused a media frenzy, with two television networks in particular portraying it like a reality show with daily updates for months. The television stations have been accused of trivialising the incident in order to boost viewer ratings, as well as perhaps tampering with the inquiry.
Mr Chaiphol rose to prominence as a small star, appearing on the show for a limited time, gaining a large following, receiving large donations, and maintaining his innocence.
