Dead woman's Napier link

Jindarat Prutsiriporn had previously served jail time for drug offences in Napier.

The Thai woman who died from injuries after escaping from a moving car while bound and gagged had previously served jail time for drug offences in Napier.

Jindarat Prutsiriporn's death is being investigated as a homicide, with police saying yesterday she may have had links to the organised-crime scene.

Middlemore Hospital confirmed Ms Prutsiriporn died from her injuries just after 11pm on Wednesday.

Police are piecing together why she was in the boot, who put her there and what happened to her before she was found bleeding and unresponsive with critical injuries on Huia Rd, Papatoetoe, in Auckland on Tuesday night.

It can now be revealed the 50-year-old was locked up for 2 years in 2011 after pleading guilty to conspiring to import the methamphetamine precursor pseudoephedrine, as well as other drug offences.

The charges stemmed from a search of a Marewa property in November 2009 that uncovered more than 70g of methamphetamine and quantities of cannabis.

As a result of the find, Hastings beneficiary George Wakely, who was 54 at the time, was sentenced to five years, nine months in prison on multiple charges of importing pseudoephedrine and others of possessing methamphetamine and cannabis for supply.

His Thai-born wife Juthamat Wakely, then 45 years old, was sentenced to eight months' home detention on related charges.

Detective Inspector Dave Lynch said a team of 17 was continuing to assess information being received from the public regarding Ms Prutsiriporn's death.

Police were also still appealing for sightings of a late-model silver vehicle in Papatoetoe and surrounding areas on Tuesday night.