Investigators have identified human remains found in Hualien County last week as belonging to a couple who went missing following the slaying of five siblings nine years ago, and said other new evidence might help to finally solve the case.
DNA testing and forensic examination confirmed the remains were of Liu Chih-chun (劉志勤) and Lin Chen-mi (林真米), a husband and wife suspected in the 2006 murder of their five children, Ministry of Justice officials said yesterday.
A local resident discovered two skulls and some other bones by chance on Tzuyun Mountain (慈雲山) in Hualien County’s Jian Township (吉安) on Wednesday.
After the finding was reported, judicial investigators guessed the remains might be connected to the 2006 case, and dispatched forensic and criminal investigators to gather evidence and examine the scene.
The ministry’s Institute of Forensic Medicine yesterday confirmed that the remains were those of the missing couple and said the finding has been forwarded to the Hualien District Prosecutors’ Office.
Eyeglasses, shoes, clothing and a sleeping bag were found at the site, matching items relatives said had belonged to the couple.
The bodies of their five children were discovered when police broke into the couple’s house on Sept. 8, 2006, after neighbors complained of a foul odor coming from the residence. They were found to have been strangled to death in the bathroom, with their hands and feet bound by wire.
The crime shocked the nation, and the disappearance of the chief suspects meant that the unsolved murders were subject to much speculation.
Liu had run a business taking pictures of tourists at popular attractions in Hualien County, but racked up debts worth tens of millions of NT dollars, and investigations at the time posited that these debts could have provided the motive for the crime.
Investigators yesterday said that on-site examinations and other evidence suggest that the couple went to the mountain after committing the murders and committed suicide by ingesting pesticide or another toxic substance.
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