A doctoral student at National Taiwan University of Sport surnamed Chen (陳) was arrested on Monday on suspicion of killing a 43-year-old woman surnamed Cheng (鄭), Taichung police said yesterday.
Cheng’s brother last week filed filed a missing person report, saying that his sister on Monday last week left Taichung to go to Hualien and the family had not heard from her since.
Cheng, who lived in Changhua, was last seen riding pillion on Chen’s scooter toward Taichung, the report said, adding that she had not been seen after she entered Chen’s residence in Taichung.
The two met in 2013 after Chen was advised to see Cheng — a counselor at the university — because of radical mood swings following an unsuccessful bid in a departmental election, the report said, adding that they had evidently entered into a relationship.
Police summoned Chen for questioning after receiving the missing person report.
Police quoted Chen as saying that he tricked Cheng into going to his house by saying he had organized a trip to Hualien, but in fact he planned to announce his intention to break up with her.
Chen lost his temper after they had an argument and accidentally strangled Cheng, police quoted him as saying.
The following morning he rented a car and disposed of the body in mountains near Nantou County’s Cingjing Farm (清境農場), police said.
They obtained permission from the district prosecutors’ office to detain Chen and began a search for the body in the area Chen described.
Officers found Cheng’s body on Monday and after an autopsy the office confirmed that she had been strangled.
University secretary-general Chang Wu-lung (張武隆) said that Chen was known to have temper issues and was asked to seek Cheng’s counseling, the Chinese-language Apple Daily reported.
The university did not know that the two had a personal relationship, Chang said, adding that it was deeply sorry to hear of the developments.
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