Suspect in Paju Freezer Murder Case Demanded 'a Woman' Day Before Crime

[Anchor]

The suspect in the Paju freezer murder case has been transferred to the prosecution in custody. According to police investigations, the suspect installed a freezer specifically for the purpose of confining people, and a day before the crime, he requested a woman to be his trading partner.

Reporter Cho Min-ki has the details.

[Reporter]

A man wearing a cap and keeping his head down sits in the back seat of a police transport bus. He is the 39-year-old suspect in the Paju freezer murder case, surnamed Shin.

The police transferred Shin to the prosecution today (September 14) on charges including kidnapping and murder of a person, as well as forgery and uttering of securities. They stated that Shin committed the crime to make massive profits by selling counterfeit department store gift certificates worth approximately 50 billion won.

Initially, the gift certificates were supposed to be appraised by a broker, Person A, who had brought the female victim to Paju. However, it was revealed that a day before the incident, Shin requested, "I hope a woman can come," leading to Person A's acquaintance, the female victim, taking on the role instead.

It appears Shin judged that a woman would be easier to target, and police have uncovered several other circumstances indicating that Shin planned the crime in advance.

First, Shin began preparing for the freezer in mid-July, inquired about renting one on August 3, and signed a one-month lease to install the freezer in his cafe a week before the incident, according to the investigation.

A police official stated, "It appears that Shin installed the freezer to confine anyone who might interfere if a problem arose during the transaction, and he confined the victim out of concern that the forgery of the gift certificates would be exposed to the outside world."

While Shin claims the crime was accidental, arguing that he did not plan to murder her from the beginning, the police maintain that they can prove he confined her knowing she could die as a result.

However, the investigation so far indicates that no one other than Shin was involved in murdering the woman.

Police plan to continue their investigation into other individuals involved in the production and distribution of the counterfeit gift certificates.

(Video by: Lee Sang-hak | Video editing by: Choi Hye-ran | Design: Yang Gi-tae)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.