Chinese Man Arrested at Bangkok Airport for Gruesome Murder of Transgender Woman in Thailand

On the morning of April 26, 2025, a heinous crime occurred in Nong Prue Subdistrict, Bang Lamung District, Chonburi Province, Thailand, where a Chinese man is suspected of brutally murdering a Thai transgender woman in an apartment. He was apprehended at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok while attempting to flee the country.

According to reports from various major Thai media outlets, at 11:30 AM that day, Police Captain Kittipong Tangkham, Deputy Inspector of Pattaya City Police Station, received a report of a deceased body found in a four-story apartment building in the central alley of Arunothai Village.

Upon receiving the report, Deputy Inspector Kittipong, along with Police Colonel Anukul Sarakulthorn, Superintendent of Pattaya City Police Station, Deputy Superintendent Arun Sapanon of Investigations, officials from the Second Forensic Science Division of Chonburi Provincial Police, a duty doctor from Pattaya Bang Lamung Hospital, and rescue workers, rushed to the scene.

Police investigation revealed the deceased to be 25-year-old transgender woman Woranan Pannacha, found lying naked on her back in the bathroom of a second-floor apartment. She had multiple stab wounds from a sharp object, with lacerations extending from her neck to her lower abdomen, exposing some internal organs. Her heart had been removed and placed outside her body, and her left lung had been cut out. Her right lung was missing. Her private parts were mutilated. Traces of blood in the bathroom had been partially washed away.

A large bag containing clothes, scissors, and other tools was found in the room. Pattaya police have cordoned off the scene, collected DNA samples, and are conducting a further detailed examination.

The 61-year-old apartment manager told police that around 2:00 AM on April 26th, she heard a loud argument between a Chinese man and the transgender woman coming from the room. Subsequently, she heard the woman shout, "Let go of me, don't hurt me..." accompanied by violent kicking on the door. The noise gradually subsided about an hour later. In the morning, following instructions from the owner, the manager knocked on the door to warn them, but there was no response. After opening the door with a spare key, she discovered the deceased's body and immediately called the police.

Apartment records identified the Chinese man involved as Fu Tongyuan, 42 years old, from Hubei province. He had rented the room starting at 9:00 AM on April 25th for a one-week period. Passport records showed that he had entered Thailand multiple times as a tourist. CCTV footage showed Fu Tongyuan hurriedly leaving the apartment through the back door around 6:00 AM on the same day, carrying a suitcase.

Police Colonel Anukul, Superintendent of Pattaya City Police Station, stated that preliminary investigations indicate Fu Tongyuan brought the deceased back to the apartment on the afternoon of April 25th. A violent struggle is believed to have occurred in the room during the early morning hours. Police suspect that the suspect inflicted fatal injuries on the victim during the altercation. Following the incident, police quickly reviewed surveillance footage and collaborated with immigration authorities to set up controls at the airport and border crossings.

On the afternoon of the same day, Thai police successfully intercepted Fu Tongyuan at Suvarnabhumi International Airport as he was preparing to board a flight back to China. The suspect has now been taken back to Pattaya City Police Station for further interrogation, and the case is under thorough investigation.