FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

‘Truth serum’ found on corpse

‘Truth serum’ found on corpse

AN initial test found traces of a substance on the corpse of an American man whose dismembered body was found in a freezer during a police raid at a building in Bangkok’s Sukhumvit Soi 56 last month, said city police chief Lt-General Sanit Mahathaworn yes

Sanit said unofficial test results showed chemicals had been used on the body but police were waiting for detailed test results from Chulalongkorn University’s Forensic Science Department.
A source reported that the test found sodium thiopental, which is colloquially known as “truth serum”, in the man's liver at a ratio of 354.84 nanograms per one gram of tissue. The chemical is used at hospitals as anaesthesia to induce sleep. 
The side effect of inducing drowsiness has led to its reported use as a so-called “truth serum”. 
Chemical markers indicated that the substance was probably administered to the man while he was still alive.
Sanit said that police were also waiting for confirmation from the US Embassy whether the deceased man was American businessman Charles Edward Ditlefsen, which should be available in the next one to two weeks. 
Sanit said police would investigate at least 10 additional aspects of the case and discuss their findings and progress in a meeting later this week.
During the September 23 raid, three American men – Herbert Craig La Fon, 63, James Douglas Eger, 63, and Aaron Thomas Gabel, 40 – were arrested on suspicion of passport forgery and other charges, while police discovered the dismembered body inside a commercial freezer at the same building.
 
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