Thailand exonerates man falsely accused of cannibalism after 60 years

A decades-old urban legend in Thailand regarding a suspected cannibalistic serial killer has been overturned by new evidence and investigations. Huang Lihui, known as ‘Sai Wi’, was executed in 1959 after being accused of murdering six children and consuming their organs between 1954 and 1958.

Following his execution, Huang’s body was preserved as a mummy and displayed at the Siriraj Hospital Forensic Museum for 60 years, labeled as a cannibal. However, recent investigations and documentaries suggest the conviction was a result of judicial flaws and the social climate of the 1950s. Evidence indicates that the police may have used coercion to obtain confessions, and the widespread anti-Chinese sentiment of that era likely made the migrant worker a scapegoat.

Key discrepancies in the original case include the improbability of a single impoverished laborer committing crimes across four provinces, and the fact that the original court verdict did not actually mention cannibalism. In 2020, following public outcry and calls for justice, Siriraj Hospital removed the ‘cannibal’ label and cremated his remains, providing a sense of closure to a 60-year judicial tragedy.