Body Parts Found in Incheon Recycling Center Likely Belong to Adult; Police Focus on Missing Persons

The National Forensic Service (NFS) has concluded that the body parts discovered at a public recycling facility in Incheon likely belong to an adult, prompting police to focus their investigation on identifying the victim through missing persons records.

According to the Incheon Yeonsu Police Station on Tuesday (June 16), the NFS notified police the previous day that a left leg found on June 10 at the Southern Metropolitan Living Resource Recovery Center in Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, is estimated to belong to an adult between 161 and 165 cm tall.

Police had initially considered the possibility that the victim was a young student due to the small foot size of 210 mm. However, they have narrowed the scope of their investigation following the assessment that the leg length and physical development are consistent with those of an adult.

Taking into account the physical characteristics—a height of 161–165 cm and relatively small feet—police are now focusing on securing and comparing DNA from adult missing persons and those who have not returned home.

"At this point, we believe the database of absent students from elementary, middle, and high schools in Incheon, which we previously requested, is no longer significant," a police official said. "We cannot disclose the specific scale of the identification process."

The police, who have established a 64-member investigation headquarters, added 40 personnel from the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency's regional investigation unit yesterday to trace the route through which the body parts entered the center.

They are simultaneously analyzing CCTV footage from the surrounding area and tracking the routes of transport vehicles that delivered recyclable materials to the center a total of 34 times on the day the body parts were discovered.

However, as the collection routes of the eight transport companies that delivered recyclables to the center on the day of the discovery are extensive, it is expected to take a considerable amount of time to identify the exact location where the body was discarded and the perpetrator.

The collection areas for these companies reportedly include Cheonghak-dong, Seonhak-dong, Ongnyeon 1 and 2-dong, and Yeonsu 1 and 3-dong in Yeonsu-gu, as well as Hang-dong and Dowon-dong in Jung-gu.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.