OSBI searches for piece of evidence in man’s death in Seminole County

Thanakrit Thuetong

On Sunday, July 23, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office called in OSBI special agents to help with an investigation into a body being found off State Highway 56 near Interstate 40.

The medical examiner has performed an autopsy, but doctors are waiting on results of toxicology tests before they determine manner of death.

OSBI has identified the man as 41-year-old Thanakrit Thuetong, of Thailand. Thuetong had lived in the United States since 2012. He was last living in Florida.

During the investigation, OSBI agents determined he parked his 2009 black Pontiac G5 car in the parking lot of a Seminole County convenience store Friday afternoon.

Surveillance video shows him inside the store with a black backpack. The video captures him walking outside the store, past his car, and along the highway. His body was found approximately a half mile from the store. However, that black backpack was not found.

OSBI agents are asking whomever took the backpack to return it. Agents are only interested in the backpack, not the person who took it or why it was taken.

Thuetong does have relatives (not immediate family) living in California. It is possible Thuetong was driving along Interstate 40 from Florida to California. Agents are working to speak to that relative.

If anyone has information on the backpack or Thuetong’s death, call the OSBI hotline at 1-800-522-8017.