Jang Mi-ran's Father: 'Palm Tree Farm Was a Place My Daughter Feared and Avoided'

"My daughter rarely went to the palm tree farm. She said it was way too terrifying..."

The father of 37-year-old Jang Mi-ran, whose body was found on August 24 about 100 days after she was reported missing, spoke out with a heavy expression today (August 27).

Having guarded his daughter's funeral parlor alone from the previous night until early this morning, the father, Mr. Jang, stated before departing for the funeral procession, "My daughter told her boyfriend that the palm tree farm was 'terrifying' and 'a place she didn't want to go,' and that she never went anywhere near there."

He continued, unable to finish his sentence, "My daughter was normally easily frightened, so it doesn't make any sense that she went there. Oh, sigh!"

Located in Hallim-eup, Jeju City, the palm tree farm is near the accommodation where Mr. Jang's daughter had been staying long-term, and it is where her body was discovered on August 24.

The palm tree farm is densely packed with palm trees standing about 3 to 6 meters tall, creating a dark atmosphere even during the day once you step inside. When night falls, it is a place even local residents avoid.

Father Mr. Jang shared that police officers from the Jeju Western Police Station visited him the previous day and told him, "There was a slight weakness in between the neck bones, and as it was pulled, it broke. Um, they said it broke," conveying remarks suggesting that his daughter took her own life by hanging.

When asked by reporters whether it was believable that his daughter had been at the palm tree farm for over 100 days, father Mr. Jang could not hide his bewildered expression, saying, "Honestly, I don't really know."

He also reddened with tears, saying, "My daughter was a truly wonderful pillar of our family, almost like the backbone of our household."

Regarding Police Inspector A, who falsely closed the missing person report filed for his daughter, he wore a futile expression and said, "How could someone like that... sigh."

He continued, "Because the missing persons case was closed right after the report was filed (on May 15), didn't the police who came out to search just turn back and leave? If a proper search had been conducted back then, we would have known immediately. To think how wicked of a thing they did! The system was flawed too, what!"

At the same time, he added, "You can't just lump all police together as bad because of one person (Inspector A); many people suffer due to one person's deviant behavior," while expressing gratitude to the police and everyone else who helped in the search for his daughter.

Concluding with a strained expression, he said, "The remaining family members are feeling very exhausted from this incident. While I am grateful that many people paid attention, I hope it stops appearing (in the media and elsewhere) now."

Jang was found dead on August 24, exactly 104 days after leaving her long-term accommodation on the night of May 12, at a palm tree farm located just 400 meters away from her lodging.

Jang's romantic partner had previously reported her missing to the police on May 15, three days after she went missing. However, Police Inspector A, who received the case, lied to the reporting partner by claiming that "contact had been made with Jang" and falsely closed the case.

The inspector also arbitrarily deleted Jang's record from the missing person profiling system by falsely entering that she had died in a traffic accident, thereby dismissing the missing person report just about 2 hours and 30 minutes after it was filed.

The police stated that based on autopsy results, Jang is presumed to have entered the palm tree farm between the night of May 12 and the early morning of May 13—before the missing person report was filed—and taken her own life by hanging from a palm tree, and that they are investigating the exact cause of death.

Unlike what was previously communicated to the bereaved family, the police stated that Jang's autopsy results revealed no unusual fractures.

However, police explained that the hyoid bone beneath the tongue is known to fracture easily when someone is hanged, and it appeared as though Jang's hyoid bone might have been fractured as well.

Nevertheless, Jang's forensic pathologist determined that the hyoid bone was not fractured due to trauma, but rather became detached over time following her death.

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