KUALA LUMPUR – A Malaysian student in Taiwan was allegedly strangled to death by a man she had met on social media platform Instagram several days prior to her demise.
The 24-year-old student, only identified by her surname Tsai, was found dead in her apartment on Thursday (October 13) after the man, known as Chen, had entered her apartment on Dadong Road in Taipei’s Shilin District the previous day.
Liberty Times reported that initial police findings revealed that the two had first contacted each other through Instagram “five or six days” before the alleged murder occured.
The investigations also noted that Tsai, who was a model with over 1,000 followers on Instagram, was a final-year exchange student at Ming Chuan University but had recently suspended her studies.
Prior to Tsai being found by authorities, Chen had contacted his parents on the same day to say that he was suicidal – following which his parents had notified the police who proceeded to visit his residence in New Taipei’s Yingge district.
Based on a report by Taiwan News, the visit proved unfruitful as Chen did not respond to the dispatched officer who departed after his knocks were left unanswered, leading to the parents requesting additional police aid.
An ambulance was later called to Chen’s apartment as he was found in a semi-unconscious state after overdosing on medication. He reportedly confessed to strangling a woman during the ride to the hospital, prompting police to check on Tsai.
Her body was then found with evident signs of strangulation.
Sin Chew Daily had reported on Thursday that Tsai is from Serdang, Selangor.
It cited the Ming Chuan University Alumni Association as saying that Tsai had studied in the Communications Department of the 37th Overseas Youth Vocational Training School for two years.
She had then continued her studies at Ming Chuan’s Advertising and Strategic Marketing Department.
Sin Chew added today that Tsai’s family has travelled to Taiwan to arrange her funeral.
It quoted Taipei Economic and Cultural Office press and media division director Benjamin Hong Zheng-bin as saying that the family has requested privacy during these troubling times.
As of press time, Taipei police said that the probe into the case is still ongoing. – The Vibes, October 15, 2022
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