Global Courant
BANGKOK – Police on Friday concluded their investigation into Thailand’s most suspected serial killer and handed over the case against a woman accused of a wave of cyanide poisonings to prosecutors.
Fourteen victims died and one survived in an alleged killing spree that lasted eight years, police said, announcing they would file the case with the attorney general for prosecution on Friday.
Sararat Rangsiwuthaporn faces about 80 charges, including 14 counts of first-degree murder — a record in Thai crime history, police said.
“Sararat is charged with first-degree murder in all 14 cases, which carry the death penalty,” Mr Anek Taosuparb, deputy commander of the Crime Investigation Division, told reporters.
“This is a historic case in Thailand. Not even Jack the Ripper from the UK killed that many,” said Deputy Chief of Police Surachate Hakparn, referring to the pseudonymous killer of at least five women in London’s East End in 1888.
Sararat has pleaded not guilty to the charges, according to police.
Authorities said the alleged murders were committed with a financial motive and that the suspect was addicted to online gambling.
She allegedly swindled a total of over $140,000 (S$190,000) from her victims before poisoning them with cyanide.
Thai agents questioned more than 900 witnesses and examined 25,000 documents.
Sararat is not eligible for bail because police say she would pose a danger to the public.
Sararat suffered a miscarriage in prison earlier this week and was sent to hospital, local media reported. She was four months pregnant when she was arrested in late April.
Police denied that their interrogations contributed to the miscarriage.
Her ex-husband, a high-ranking police officer, is also facing criminal charges for covering up a crime. AFP
