Sexual Assault, Stalking Dismissed With Just a Warning Text? Investigation Reaches National Office of Investigation

[Anchor]

The police investigation into allegations of botched handling in the Jang Yoon-gi case is expanding beyond the Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station to its highest pinnacle, the National Office of Investigation (NOI). Circumstances are increasingly coming to light showing that two days before Jang murdered a high school girl, the Gwangsan Police Station responded inadequately despite receiving a stalking report.

Here is a report by reporter Im Jihyeon.

[Reporter]

The National Police Agency's special investigation team summoned and questioned Superintendent Kim, the former chief of the Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station who directed the initial investigation into the Jang Yoon-gi case, this morning (July 23) as a suspect.

Superintendent Kim is suspected of exerting undue influence in applying a simple murder charge instead of a murder with intent to commit rape charge against Jang Yoon-gi.

The special investigation team is focusing on how the Gwangsan Police Station handled a stalking report filed by a Vietnamese woman, identified as A, two days before Jang murdered the late Lee Chae-won.

Previously, Jang was accused of breaking into woman A's studio apartment, sexually assaulting her, and subsequently stalking her.

When woman A reported the stalking at around 8:00 p.m. on May 3, officers from the Cheomdan District Unit of the Gwangsan Police Station who were dispatched to the scene only sent Jang a warning text message and did not even book him.

After receiving the stalking warning message, Jang threw his mobile phone's USIM chip into the Yeongsan River and later committed the murder.

Although this was crucial evidence supporting Jang's murder with intent to rape charge, the Gwangsan Police Station assigned the case to the Women and Youth Division for a separate investigation.

The special investigation team suspects that the Gwangsan Police Station's leadership, including Superintendent Kim, attempted to disconnect the link between the murder and stalking crimes out of concern over disciplinary action resulting from their inadequate response to stalking.

The allegation that the National Office of Investigation ordered the Gwangsan Police Station to conduct separate investigations regarding Jang is also subject to verification.

Today, the special investigation team summoned and questioned the head of the Violent Crimes Investigation Division at the NOI and two employees from the same department as reference witnesses, though it was reported that then National Office of Investigation Head Park Sung-ju is not yet included among those subject to investigation.

(Video by Park Ji-in, Design by Kim Ye-ji)