A murder investigation was launched after a woman’s body was discovered weighted down underwater at a popular fishing spot near tourist hotspots in Thailand. Disturbing details emerged after locals spotted the body floating near Ban Tha Yai pier in Phang Nga province – a short distance from Phuket and Ko Phi Phi.

Police racing to the scene found the victim with an iron chain wrapped tightly around her neck, attached to two heavy concrete dumbbells designed to keep her hidden below the surface. Despite attempts to sink her, the corpse floated close to shore, where horrified fishermen raised the alarm. Investigators identified the victim as Ms Kansiri, a 51-year-old worker from northeastern Thailand who had been living in Phuket.

She was wearing black shorts and a grey T-shirt when she was found. Police believed she was strangled before her body was dumped in the sea, likely two days before she surfaced in August last year.

A 21-year-old man was arrested in connection with the horrific killing. Officers from the Region 8 Investigation Unit and Khok Kloi Police Station tracked the suspect following raids at properties in Kathu District, Phuket, and in Ban Kalai, Phang Nga.

Police also seized a black Isuzu pickup truck linked to the crime. CCTV footage captured the vehicle travelling from Phuket to Phang Nga, dumping a body near Tha Nun before heading back. Forensic experts examined the truck for bloodstains and DNA evidence.

Police Lt Pheerawit Chaichanyut confirmed at the time: “This is a serious case, and we are treating it as a murder. The way the body was weighted down points towards a deliberate attempt to conceal the crime.”

Phang Nga Provincial Police Supt Pol. Col. Prawit Engchuan added that the suspect was brought in for intense questioning as detectives attempted to establish a motive.

The grisly case bore striking similarities to an unsolved murder in Rayong province, where a decomposed female body was found stuffed inside a locked suitcase, also weighted down with two 10kg dumbbells in a canal.

Local authorities in Phang Nga ramped up water patrols while a full autopsy was ordered to confirm whether Ms Kansiri was dead before being thrown into the sea.