NAKHON SI THAMMARAT: The body of murdered man, his hands tied behind his back, has been found in a shallow grave at an oil palm plantation in Bang Khan district.
Police believed it is the body of a cockfight promoter in Chumphon province reported missing since Feb 1.
The body was found buried less than a metre deep in a palm plantation in tambon Ban Lam Nao of Bang Khan district on Tuesday night.
The man's hands were tied behind his back and his ankles were also bound together. The man's face was covered with adhesive tape and the body appeared to have been splashed with acid, police said.
Nakhon Si Thammarat police chief Pol Maj Gen Somchai Suetortrakul said on Wednesday that investigators believed the dead man was Khanob Somwang, 56, but forensic police had yet to confirm the identification.
Mr Khanob, alias Ko Mas, ran a cockfighting ring in Sawi district of Chumphon province. He disappeared on the night of Feb 1. Police believe he was abducted.
Police sources said detectives have identified three suspects in the case and were preparing an application for court arrest warrants.
A stripped car was found on Sunday in a pond at a palm plantation of a suspect in Thung Song district of Nakhon Si Thammarat. Police believe the car was used to abduct Mr Khanob.
The stripped car hauled from a pond and believed used in the abduction, found in Thung Song district of Nakhon Si Thammarat on Sunday. (Photo: Nujaree Rakrun)