EXCLUSIVE: 'My Father Is a Cop,' Confessed Jang Yoon-ki... The Mysterious Actions That Followed

SBS previously exclusively reported the shocking news that the active-duty police officer father of Jang Yoon-ki, who murdered a female high school student in Gwangju, destroyed key evidence that could prove the charges of "intent to commit sexual assault." Surprisingly, this report was only the beginning of the story. Circumstances that are hard to believe occurred in 2026 are emerging one after another. How was Jang's father, Inspector Jang, able to destroy the "real doll," which was key evidence?
 
The Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station arrested Jang Yoon-ki on the morning of May 5, the day of the crime, and obtained a statement during the investigation that "my father's job is a police officer." Jang's residence is in Gwangju. It was highly likely that his father was also working in Gwangju. However, there were no further questions or investigations regarding this statement. Inspector Jang, who is known to have investigative experience, was thus not subjected to any significant verification during the initial investigation stage. And the two actual real dolls that could prove Jang Yoon-ki's true criminal intent disappeared from the world by Inspector Jang's hands.
 
However, another hidden story has been revealed. It has been confirmed that on May 8, the day Inspector Jang destroyed the real dolls, he had a direct phone conversation with Jang Yoon-ki before destroying the evidence. Jang Yoon-ki had been detained since May 7, the day before. Naturally, he did not have the freedom to make direct phone calls to outsiders. How was this possible? It was a police officer from the Gwangsan Police Station who connected the two over the phone. Furthermore, this officer was the investigation team leader in charge of the "Jang Yoon-ki case." During this call, Inspector Jang asked Jang Yoon-ki, "Is it true that you threw your phone into the river right after the crime?" and Jang Yoon-ki replied, "Yes." The Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency explained, "Since Jang Yoon-ki was not actively cooperating with the investigation, we tried to persuade him through his father." However, after the call, Inspector Jang went to Jang Yoon-ki's house, dismantled the two real dolls, and disposed of them. This happened immediately after the phone call.


The more serious part comes next. In fact, Inspector Jang did not know where Jang Yoon-ki, who lived separately, resided. How, then, did he find the place and destroy the key evidence? Someone had given Inspector Jang the address of Jang Yoon-ki's studio apartment and even the passcode to the door lock. It was the very same person who connected the phone call between Jang Yoon-ki and Inspector Jang on that day—the investigation team leader of the "Jang Yoon-ki case." As a result, the police investigation team essentially opened the path for Inspector Jang to access the key evidence. It was also revealed that the key investigator in charge of the case and Inspector Jang spoke on the phone multiple times. Circumstances suggesting that investigation-related information was leaked during the calls between the two, who had previously worked at the same workplace, were also detected. This has raised growing suspicions that the police investigation team, which is supposed to prove criminal charges and uncover the substantive truth, instead acted as a "bridge" between Jang Yoon-ki and Inspector Jang, who was formerly affiliated with the Gwangsan Police Station.
 
Questions still remain. What kind of investigation information was leaked? The Gwangsan Police Station conducted an emergency search of Jang Yoon-ki's vehicle used in the crime while arresting him on the day of the offense. And they returned the vehicle to Inspector Jang just one day later, citing that "the vehicle has no direct relevance to the crime." The investigation team, which had done this, later asked Inspector Jang where the returned vehicle was during a phone call, explaining that they "wanted to check the black box"—to the very person who had destroyed the key evidence. The investigation team even told Inspector Jang over the phone about specific details of the investigation's progress, saying, "We plan to apply for an arrest warrant and a search and seizure warrant for your son, Jang Yoon-ki." Their "private secret" that crossed the line has now become a matter of determining its illegality.


The police's questionable handling of evidence has also added to the controversy. As the controversy over the destruction of evidence related to Jang Yoon-ki's sexual crime grew, the police explained: "Since the forensic team had already collected sufficient DNA from the 'real doll,' there was no need to seize it." They also emphasized that they had requested a DNA analysis from the National Forensic Service and received a report. However, when transferring the case to the prosecution, they omitted this report, which is a key clue to proving Jang Yoon-ki's crime for sexual assault purposes. This report even contained the results of DNA analysis on Jang Yoon-ki's vehicle and belongings at the time of the crime.
 
Ultimately, just one day after SBS's initial report, the National Police Agency launched an internal investigation. They plan to examine the overall facts, including the history of reporting to superiors during the investigation, the appropriateness of evidence preservation measures, allegations of pre-leaking investigation details, and Inspector Jang's alleged destruction of evidence. The Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency released an official statement saying, "We humbly accept the internal investigation and will respond sincerely in accordance with principles." Nevertheless, an uncomfortable atmosphere within the police remains. While some within the police react by saying, "The era of neglecting a son's crime investigation just because the father is a police officer is over," the explanation that "there was no misconduct during the investigation process" remains unchanged. After the controversy grew, some local media interpreted Inspector Jang's destruction of evidence as merely "a father cleaning up his son's room." They quoted a specific individual's perspective in their reports, stating that "it does not seem like an action out of the ordinary."

However, the real doll in question was not a simple household item, but a key clue that could heavily influence whether Jang Yoon-ki's crime was committed for sexual assault purposes, as well as his sentencing. Articles were also published suggesting that the prosecution was also at fault for not requesting the police to preserve the real doll as evidence. However, it turned out that the police did not attach details regarding the real doll to the investigation record when applying for an arrest warrant the day after the crime, and the prosecution only became aware of the real doll's existence after Inspector Jang had already disposed of it.

Before shifting the blame to the prosecution, we must first examine exactly what the police recorded and what they omitted in the investigation records. The flow of this case so far is, in a way, simple. With only the police investigation, Jang Yoon-ki would have been charged with general murder, which carries a minimum statutory sentence of five years in prison. In the initial investigation, the police missed the real doll, whose major body parts had been mutilated by Jang Yoon-ki. They also missed the mobile phone previously used by Jang Yoon-ki, as well as the vehicle's black box SD card containing his voice recordings. The evidence and suspicions, which were almost buried, were uncovered during the prosecution's supplementary investigation phase. As a result, Jang Yoon-ki was indicted on charges of murder with sexual assault, which carries a minimum sentence of life imprisonment.

The compulsory investigation authority granted to the police presupposes such strict responsibility. The loopholes in evidence management, the circumstances of leaking investigation information, and Inspector Jang's alleged destruction of evidence revealed in this case are all directly linked to proving whether Jang Yoon-ki's crime was committed for sexual assault purposes. The part where Inspector Jang stated during the prosecution's investigation, "I was concerned that my son's crime would be linked to sexual aspects," also adds weight to this connection. The critical point has virtually been passed. Ultimately, five days after the SBS report, the police formed a 22-member dedicated team and urgently arrested the investigation team leader of the Jang Yoon-ki case. They confirmed circumstances of evidence destruction during the process of transferring the case to the prosecution. Now that the case has moved beyond an internal probe into a formal investigation, we will continue to track down the remaining suspicions hidden beneath the iceberg.
 
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.