The mystery over an army cadet's death thickened Wednesday, with the hospital which removed his organs without the knowledge of his parents saying they would supply them for a second autopsy.
Army-owned Phramongkutklao Hospital forensic officials insisted they had acted legally in removing Pakapong "Moei" Tanyakan's organs as part of an autopsy procedure, despite failing to tell the dead man's family.
His parents, Pichet and Sukanya Tanyakan, suspect foul play in their son's death.
Staff at the hospital removed the organs during an autopsy and returned the body to the family for religious rites with the organs still missing.
The parents secretly took the body from a temple where the religious rites were to be performed and delivered it to the Central Institute of Forensic Science (CIFS), a private entity, for a second autopsy, as they were suspicious about the first amid uncertainty about their son's cause of death.
The centre said Wednesday its autopsy on Pakapong, a cadet at the military preparatory school in Nakhon Nayok, would be completed by the end next week.
According to the family, the death certificate indicates their son died of acute heart failure but provided no details. Their suspicions intensified after the CIFS team found some organs under the chest and abdomen and the brain had been removed.
CIFS director Samana Promros said the institute has contacted police who are expected to collect the removed organs from Phramongkutklao Hospital and deliver them to the CIFS today. He said the CIFS autopsy team should complete the examination and identify the cause of death within seven days.
In defence of the hospital, the director said the doctors removed the organs to examine them to further determine the cause of death, which would help allay the family's suspicions. He said the controversy surrounding the removed organs is likely to stem from a communication problem between the hospital and the family.
On Tuesday, the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School said the organs were taken out to fully determine the cause of the cadet's death. Pakapong collapsed at 4pm on Oct 17 with a weak heartbeat. He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead. Due to the unusual nature of his death, the hospital decided on an autopsy.
The family secretly removed their son's body from funeral rites at a temple on Oct 24 to undergo the autopsy at the CIFS. During the procedure, the autopsy team found some of the organs were missing and the autopsy could not be completed.
According to Mr Samana, the family's letter requesting the autopsy was sent to the CIFS on Oct 25 and it started the autopsy on Nov 1. Dr Panjai Woharndee, a CIFS official, said that removing organs for further examination without asking the family's permission is neither illegal nor unethical.
She said there are no standard rules on the matter while noting that DNA testing can prove if the returned organs belonged to the cadet.
Traiyarit Temhiwong, deputy director and spokesman of CIFS, said the centre normally allows the family to observe every step in the autopsy procedure, and the missing organs aroused the family's suspicions further. However, Dr Traiyarit said the CIFS has informed the cadet's family the removed organs were not discarded, but taken for further tests.