A woman in Taiwan has been accused of hiding her dead father’s body in her home for years to claim his military pension. According to the South China Morning Post, the woman, whose identity has not been revealed, lived with her father for over five decades.
The authorities first got suspicious last November when health officials were denied entry to her home for dengue-prevention measures. As a result, she was fined NT$60,000 (approximately Rs 1.50 lakh)
Her constant refusal to allow government officials into her home raised concerns and prompted police involvement. When officers interrogated the woman regarding her father’s whereabouts, she initially claimed he was at a nursing home
When police pressed her further, she changed her story, claiming her brother had taken him to the mainland from their city Kaohsiung. Cops investigated her claim and discovered that the brother had been dead for 50 years, and there was no record that the woman’s father had left Taiwan.
The woman then lied again, saying that her father had died on the mainland and, but could not produce his death certificate.
The changing narratives led to the police searching her property and found a black plastic garbage bag containing the bones of an elderly person.
Upon investigation, police found that the man had been dead for a long time. A forensic expert explained that a body typically takes one to two years for a body to decompose into skeletal remains.
Notably, the woman’s father had been a military veteran who served for more than 20 years and received a monthly pension according to his rank and service history. Taiwanese military veterans typically receive an average monthly pension of NT$49,379 (approximately Rs 1.27 lakh).
The investigation into the cause of the man’s death is ongoing and authorities will determine whether the woman committed a serious crime beyond just hiding her father’s body.
Under Taiwanese law, damaging, abandoning, insulting, or stealing a corpse can carry serious penalties, including imprisonment for up to five years. If such a crime involves a direct relative or close family member, the sentence may be increased by 1.5 times.
Meanwhile, the woman is currently undergoing medical treatment while under police supervision.
