Chiang Mai:- Police have launched a hunt for a female undertaker who allegedly sold an infant corpse to a black-magic practitioner.

The suspect is identified only as “Boon”.

“We have to find her. Stealing or selling a corpse is illegal,” Provincial Police Region 5 commissioner Lt General Tanitsak Thirasawat told Thairath on Wednesday after he interrogated a self-confessed practitioner of black magic.

Chalerm Duangthong, 31, has admitted to police that he bought the corpse of an infant at Bt3,000 after Boon approached him.

“I intend to adopt the soul and raise it like my own daughter,” he said. Many Thais have worshipped baby amulets as they believe in the mystical being of Kumarn Thong, who is said to have supernatural power.

Chalerm, a former abbot of Huai Din Jee Temple in Chiang Mai’s Doi Lor district, had the corpse buried under shrines in the temple’s grounds. The corpse is covered with gold leaf and laid inside a glass coffin.

Local people have lodged a complaint against Chalerm as they feel uncomfortable with black magic.

The former abbot, so far, has insisted that although he engaged in black magic, his practice is not malicious in nature.

“I don’t use it to harm anyone,” he said.

Police have already dug up the corpse and sent it to a hospital for a proper autopsy.

“We should get autopsy results by Friday,” Tanitsak said.

He has now assigned his deputy, Pol Maj General Pacha Rattanaphan, to investigate further so as to nail down legal offenders in this case.

Surely "womanhunt"?

Totally disgusting. It would be different if the infant's body was carved up to harvest organs for use in another human ( heart, lungs, kidneys, eyes, etc). Because, well, that is different. That is an organ donor.

Just think about it! Stupid.

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...Thai culture...

Just think of the sick stuff that would happen here if there were no laws ..... This must be where those spook movies get their stories.

investigate further so as to nail down legal offenders in this case."

Am I being stupid here or is this just the most stupid statement ever? Surely, the purchaser and provider of the corpse are the legal offenders. I'm no legal expert though.

Seriously though, raising the soul up like his daughter??? Should be classed as criminally insane.

lol this has third world written all over it.

Has anyone thought about the parents