Woman Living with Father's Corpse for Years to Receive Military Pension...

Woman in her 60s Accused of Leaving Father's Body at Home

In Taiwan, it was revealed that a woman hid her deceased father's body at home for several years. She did this to continue receiving the pension of her retired soldier father.

On the 9th, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that a woman in her 60s from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, identified as Ms. A, was charged with hiding her father's body at her residence.

A woman in Taiwan was found to have hidden the body of her deceased father at home for several years. She did this to continue receiving the pension of her father, who was a retired soldier. The photo is not directly related. [Image source=Pixabay]

Last November, Ms. A was fined $1,800 (approximately 2.46 million KRW) for refusing to allow health authorities to enter her home for dengue fever prevention disinfection. Despite the fine, she continued to refuse visits from health officials, which raised suspicion and prompted the police to investigate, leading to the discovery.

When the police searched the house, they found a black bag containing human bones. Initially, Ms. A told the police that her father was in a nursing home and had gone to China with her older brother. However, investigations revealed that there was no record of her father leaving the country.

The photo is not directly related to the article content. [Image source=Pixabay]

Ms. A's father was a retired soldier who served for over 20 years and received a monthly pension. Although the exact amount was not disclosed, according to SCMP, the average pension for retired soldiers in Taiwan is about $1,500 (approximately 2.05 million KRW).

Ms. A reportedly hid her father's body despite the foul odor from decomposition starting two weeks after death, as the smell typically disappears after about a month, making it possible to conceal the body. Forensic expert Gao Dacheng stated in an interview with local media, "It generally takes 1 to 2 years for a body to decompose down to bones."

The police are investigating the cause of the father's death to determine if Ms. A committed any other crimes besides hiding the body. In Taiwan, crimes such as corpse mutilation, abandonment, or desecration carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Penalties are increased by 1.5 times if the crime involves the body of a direct relative or close family member.

In South Korea, a similar case occurred in January last year, when a woman in her 40s living in Incheon was arrested for failing to report her mother's death and leaving the body at home for over two years. The woman stated that she did not report the death to continue receiving her mother's basic pension.