CHAI NAT : A dismembered male body was found dumped in a dry canal in Manorom district on Thursday night.
Locals alerted police when a dog was spotted holding what appeared to be a human body part in its mouth.
Two bags containing human body parts were found near the 4th kilometre marker on the Khao Laem-Nong Pradu road in tambon U-tapao.
The first bag was made of black plastic and had three layers. Inside, police found a human left arm and two legs clothed in black jeans.
The second was a sack, lined with nine black plastic bags. It contained the victim's torso, clothed in a black short-sleeved shirt, a pair of boxer shorts, tight black jeans and a brown belt.
About 300 metres away, a right arm was also discovered.
No head was found.
The limbs had been severed with a clean cut, likely to have been made with a chainsaw, investigators said.
Witnesses told police that a pickup truck was seen on Wednesday night dumping bags into the canal.
Police said the victim was male and aged about 30. He had been dead for at least 12 hours when officers arrived, they said.
Police suspect the man was murdered in a different location and then dumped in the canal.
Pol Lt Col Pholphat Phongsopha, chief of Hangnam Sakhon police station, said the victim's fingerprints had been sent to a forensics lab for identification.
The body parts have also been sent for autopsy.
Investigators have been assigned to scour the area for clues and are trying to trace where the sack and plastic bags came from.
Pol Lt Col Pholphat said the bags were very large and were not intended for household use.
The bags were normally used at factories or places which deal with large volumes of rubbish, he said.
The officer could not confirm if the dead man was Thai or a foreigner.
It was previously reported that the victim might be a foreigner, given his fair complexion and appearance.