A Chinese father in Chiang Mai has appealed for justice after claiming a hospital could not locate the body of his one-month-old son when he arrived to collect it for further examination. The incident has prompted urgent scrutiny of the hospital’s body management procedures. Police and hospital officials are now investigating the circumstances surrounding the missing body. Get today's headlines by email The case emerged after a Facebook page called Chiang Mai That You Have Never Seen reported the incident on 12 March 2026. According to the post, the father said his infant son died under unclear circumstances and that the family later discovered the body could not be found when they attempted to retrieve it from the hospital. The child, identified only as a one-month-old boy, died on 8 November 2025 at a well-known hospital in Chiang Mai province. His father, Mr Fang, a Chinese national who runs a business in Chiang Mai, later sought to collect the body in order to arrange an independent autopsy. On 11 March 2026, Mr Fang went to Phu Ping Ratchaniwet Police Station in Suthep Subdistrict, Mueang district, Chiang Mai, to report the situation. The following morning he arrived at the hospital to collect the body so it could be transferred for examination at another hospital. However, hospital staff informed him that they could not locate the infant’s body. The hospital said that an internal incident report dated 11 March stated that staff responsible for the mortuary had checked the facility and were unable to find the body of the deceased child. The family had earlier questioned the cause of death after receiving the hospital’s initial autopsy results. Because they were not satisfied with those findings, they arranged for a second examination at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok. The second autopsy had been scheduled for Thursday, 12 March 2026. The missing body meant the planned transfer could not proceed as expected. Lawyer Athipong Phonchai, representing the family, has called on the hospital to clarify what happened. He said the incident raised concerns about how a major provincial hospital could lack a reliable system for handling bodies, particularly in a case where the family had already expressed doubts about the death. The lawyer added that the disappearance of the infant’s body has intensified the family’s suspicions regarding both the death and the hospital’s handling of the case. He urged authorities to investigate fully and provide answers to the family. Hospital officials have since convened an urgent meeting to review the incident and determine what may have happened. The hospital has not yet provided a full explanation for the missing body. Khaosod reported that officers from Phu Ping Ratchaniwet Police Station in Chiang Mai will summon hospital representatives to give a formal explanation as part of the investigation. Authorities said further details will be released once the facts surrounding the incident have been verified. Join the discussion? Already a member? Adapted by ASEAN Now Khaosod 13 Mar 2026
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