Wongmuang's car was also found approximately 4km away from the crime scene at a car park of a shopping mall along Chawaeng beach.
Khunthong admitted to being the person captured on CCTV footage driving the victim’s car to the shopping mall.
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Thai nurse, 35, found strangled to death in dormitory room, neighbour's boyfriend arrested
Signs of struggle were found in the room, with items scattered across the floor.
May 25, 2025, 02:35 PM
A 35-year-old nurse was strangled to death in her dormitory room at Ko Samui, an island in Thailand, on the morning of May 21.
Anchulee Wongmuang was found wearing only her underwear, with a shirt tightly bound around her neck and another shirt covering her face.
Her car was also found missing.
Her neighbour's boyfriend, Suwat Khunthong, was arrested at an abandoned pub the next day, where police said the man claimed he had intended only to take her gold ring to settle a gambling debt.
Abrasions found on her neck and signs of trauma on her head
Police said they were alerted to the discovery at a hospital around 8am on May 21, according to Thai media.
Signs of struggle were found in the room, with items scattered across the floor.
An empty condom wrapper was also found.
Abrasions were also discovered on the right side of Wongmuang's neck, as well as signs of trauma to the centre of her head.
Investigations found that the victim lived alone and returned to her room around midnight, before leaving and returning again around 2am.
A nearby resident reported hearing someone calling for help, followed by silence.
Wongmuang's body was discovered later that morning when a colleague came to check on her and received no response, prompting the colleague to use a spare key to enter the room.
Neighbour's boyfriend arrested
Police found Khunthong, 30, at a closed-down pub around 5km away from the crime scene by tracking his mobile phone signal.
He was arrested for breaking, entering, and theft, where a murder charge was later added after officers brought him in for questioning at the station.
According to the Bangkok Post, Khunthong told police he was the boyfriend of a nursing assistant who lived next door to the victim, where he claimed he just wanted to steal a gold ring to pay a gambling debt.
He entered Wongmuang's room through an open back door while she was resting. However, the nurse woke up and attempted to prevent the burglary.
According to Khunthong, he strangled her to death in retaliation for her biting his finger.
Chiangrai Times reported that the family is heartbroken and wants a punishment fitting the crime.
Top image via ฝนกู้ภัยผี อ้วนดำทำจริง/Facebook and Chiangrai Times
