Surat Thani —
Thai police have arrested a Spanish suspect for allegedly murdering and dismembering his Colombian male partner on the southern tourist island of Pha Ngan, Surat Thani.
The suspect, Mr. Daniel Jeronimo Sancho Bronchalo, a 29-year-old Spanish national, was arrested on Friday, August 4th, on suspicion that he allegedly killed and dismembered Mr. Edwin Miguel Arrieta Arteaga, a 44-year-old Colombian man, and dumped his body at a landfill on Pha Ngan Island.
The body parts were discovered in several garbage bags on August 3rd, quickly leading to Jeronimo’s arrest the next day.
On August 5th, Pol. Col. Surapong Thanomjit, the commander of Police Region 8, inspected the suspect’s hotel room and discovered key evidence, suspected to be hair strands, fat residue, and flesh fragments, of Miguel. This evidence is being examined by the forensic team, with the results expected this weekend.
Pol. Col. Surapong stated that according to an initial interview with the victim’s relatives, the victim was a gender reassignment surgeon in Colombia. He had been in a relationship with Jeronimo, a well-known chief in Spain, for over a year.
The two had arranged to meet one another on Pha Ngan Island for the full moon party. However, after Miguel arrived in Thailand and proceeded to the tropical island, his relatives mysteriously lost contact with him. When questioned, Jeronimo claimed not to have met with Miguel yet, so Miguel’s relatives coordinated with tourist police to inspect a hotel where the two had booked to stay, but they did not find either of them present.
Upon investigation, the police discovered that Jeronimo had stayed at the mentioned hotel alone and checked out before Miguel’s arrival. Subsequently on August 3rd, parts of a human body were discovered at a landfill.
On the evening of August 1st, Jeronimo was found to have purchased a set of tools including an 8-inch knife, rubber gloves, plastic wrap, stainless steel scourer, cleaning solution, and large garbage bags from a Thai convenience store, Pol. Col. Surapong stated.
According to the police report, the suspect has now confessed to murdering his partner. He admitted to separating the body parts and stuffed them inside Miguel’s travel bag. Since not all parts fit, he put the remaining parts into black garbage bags and discarded it in a bin. Then, he took the travel bag containing the head and other organs, went to rent a kayak near the hotel, and disposed of it in the sea.
Following Jeronimo’s confession, authorities mobilized a search team to locate the travel bag along the shoreline.
Although the exact motivation behind the incident is under investigation, preliminary indications suggest that it may have stemmed from jealousy, Pol. Col. Surapong suspected.
The suspect is the son of a well-known Spanish actor, Rodolfo Sancho Aguirre.
This article originally appeared on our sister website The Phuket Express.
