Thai Husband Lives With His Wife’s Dead Body For 21 Years

There’s loyalty, and then there’s this Thai husband.

74-year old retired army medic Charn Janwatchakal made headlines in 2022 for his heartbreaking story of timeless love.

In a rundown shed beside his 780-square meter house in the Bang Khen district of Bangkok, he kept the corpse of his wife hidden for 21 years. It was a secret that only he and his two estranged sons were aware of.

We didn’t tell anyone, so nobody knew.

— Mr. Charn

To his surprise, the coffin did not emit any foul odor from within, with Mr. Charn chalking this up to the formalin used for the funeral preparation two decades ago.

His wife, Madam Jirawan Khaosun, passed away in the hospital in 2001 after suffering a brain aneurysm.

It took him 21 years before he decided that it was time to finally let her go. He asked a Thai foundation to help him with the logistics of cremating his wife’s body. On April 28, the Phetkasem Foundation Bangkok opened the sealed white coffin and found the bones of Madam Jirawan inside.

I’ve kept her body for 20 years, I think it’s long enough…I felt certain that it was time and I felt at peace although I cried.

— Mr. Charn

Her ashes now rest in an urn displayed in the same shed where her coffin was placed for over two decades.

The couple met at an army hospital half a century ago in 1972. Madam Jirawan worked as a pharmacist while Mr. Charn was a patient. They quickly fell in love, got married, and had two sons together.

Mr. Charn revealed that he fell in love with his wife at first sight and that their union was a peaceful one.

I was impressed by her diligence. We never quarreled. She was always super calm, serene and never got angry at anyone

— Mr. Charn