Jang Yoon-gi claims he had no sexual intent. Is his claim true?

On the July 4 broadcast of SBS's "Unanswered Questions," the show traced Jang Yoon-gi, who brutally murdered a high school girl on her way home.

On May 5, urgent screams were heard across a six-lane road in Wolgye-dong, Gwangju. Hearing the screams, a male high school student rushed to the scene and found a female student collapsed and bleeding. At that moment, a man standing nearby asked him to call the police. As the male student attempted to make the call, the man attacked him. After stabbing the male student with a weapon, the man fled in his car.

Although she was rushed to the emergency room, the female high school student ultimately passed away. The late Lee Chae-won, 17, met her tragic death while on her way home after studying.

The perpetrator, who not only murdered the female student but also attempted to murder the male student who ran to help her, was identified as 23-year-old Jang Yoon-gi.

He claimed that before attempting suicide, he impulsively killed the victim, whom he had never met before. He also argued that it was not a premeditated crime, claiming he did not even know the victim was a high school student.

However, contrary to his claims, footage captured him stalking the victim for about 15 minutes before the crime. He also drew attention by engaging in incomprehensible behaviors after the crime, such as washing his clothes and getting a haircut.

When the police released the CCTV footage, Jang changed his story, saying, "I intended to commit suicide as planned, and while it is true I targeted Chae-won, I was merely looking for a companion to die with." He added, "Washing the clothes was not to destroy evidence, and I got a haircut because I wanted to die looking neat."

Prior to the crime, Jang had purchased a knife, withdrawn 1 million won in cash, and roamed the neighborhood in his car. He then removed the SIM card from his phone, discarded the device, and purchased gloves and a wristwatch.


However, it was revealed that a stalking report had been filed against Jang by a Vietnamese woman in her 20s prior to the incident. Jang explained that they were in a relationship and that the incident occurred while he was trying to make things work between them.

Yet, a series of actions contradicting his claims were captured, such as him sleeping in an empty room in the building opposite the Vietnamese woman's residence before murdering the high school student.


Linh, a Vietnamese woman, had worked with Jang at a restaurant until two days before the incident. Jang broke into Linh's home, sexually assaulted her, took her phone, and even confined her so she could not leave. During this time, Jang also sent a message to his mother asking, "Is a Vietnamese woman okay?"

After going to work at the restaurant, Linh informed the restaurant owner of what had happened, prompting the owner to send Jang home. Jang claimed he decided to die after his plans to marry Linh fell through. However, those around them viewed their relationship as entirely one-sided on Jang's part.


Regarding this, an expert pointed out, "Because he could not find his original target, he sought out another person to substitute and committed the murder. It is correct to view this case as an example of displaced aggression."

The expert also analyzed that the Vietnamese woman, rather than the high school student, was likely the real target, stating, "Even after murdering the high school student, his goal remained unachieved. His goal would only be fulfilled by pursuing and murdering the Vietnamese woman to the end."

The prosecution initially received the case of Jang under the charge of murder. However, they later changed the charge to murder with intent of rape, indicating that there was an intent to rape behind his murder.

The prosecution stated that the CCTV footage capturing Jang dragging the victim toward his car, along with the damaged state of the real dolls found during a search of his residence, served as crucial evidence pointing to a sexual crime motive.

Jang owned a total of two real dolls—one full-sized and one in a torso form. Notably, the real dolls he possessed had various parts of their bodies gouged and torn out, with knife stab marks left on the neck area.


Furthermore, photos secretly taken of young girls' thighs and legs at a children's center where he had previously worked as a public service agent were found in the photo album of his unused spare phone, causing widespread shock.

The prosecution also pointed out, "A notepad listing his goals was discovered, containing notes about what his objectives were targeting female coworkers and underage students. His sexual perception is warped, and it is something that cannot be understood by common sense."

During their coverage, the production team met with an informant. The informant had previously set up chat rooms pretending to be an underage high school girl to lure men seeking casual meetups and ask for small amounts of money. He revealed that Jang had chatted with him in the past and even visited his home, stating, "At the time, Jang was trying to meet an underage female, and when he was caught, he became extremely flustered."

When questioned about whether he approached the victim for sexual crimes, Jang showed an unbelievable level of composure for someone undergoing investigation for the first time, saying, "If sexual crime had been my goal, I would have moved her to the car, gone to a third location, and done something else, or I would have followed her all the way to her house."

However, the broadcast, through expert analysis of the CCTV footage, captured Jang leaving his car's back door open and pulling the victim forcefully. This led to speculation that Jang might have intended to force the victim into the car and drive away.

During his high school years, Jang had reportedly said, "If I have nothing to do when I become an adult, I'll kidnap someone in a van." Despite being pressed on whether he attempted to drag the victim away for sexual purposes, he continues to deny the allegations.

However, a forensic doctor noted that his attempt to wrap his hands around the victim's neck was not strong enough to suggest an intent to strangle her to death.

After the crime, Jang searched terms like "police location tracking" and "fainting game" on his spare phone. He claimed he searched these terms thinking, "What if I had used something else instead of a knife?"


Regarding this, an expert analyzed, "Keeping a person alive while they are unconscious is the core of the fainting game. His behavior of choking the victim from behind instead of immediately attacking her despite carrying a knife shows a distinct characteristic compared to other criminals. There is a very high possibility that he had a purpose other than simply murdering the victim."

The expert added, "The Vietnamese woman was an object to satisfy his fantasy of the opposite sex. When she rejected him, his frustration escalated, and it was under those circumstances that the victim appeared. Jang's aggressive impulses are combined with sexual desires."

Jang committed crimes targeting women, including illegal filming, dating violence, stalking, rape, and murder. In particular, an expert pointed out that the damage to the real dolls mostly involved gouging out the sexual parts of the female body, stating, "This clearly shows that he harbored a severe hatred toward women."

However, during the investigation, the real dolls in Jang's possession were destroyed. It was shockingly revealed that his father, an active-duty police officer, disposed of them before the prosecution's search and seizure.

Earlier, when it was revealed that Jang's father was an active police officer, concerns arose that the investigation might not be conducted properly. Those concerns turned out to be true. He had destroyed not only Jang's real dolls but also several mobile phones his son had used in the past. However, it was revealed that there is no legal way to punish him for this, causing public frustration.

Regarding their failure to arrest Jang despite a stalking report being filed against him before the murder, the police claimed, "We could not arrest him because the victim did not fully state the facts of her victimization. When the complaint was filed, it was late at night and required an interpreter, making it impossible to proceed with the investigation immediately."


However, an expert pointed out that the most critical golden hour was missed there, emphasizing the urgent need for institutional measures: "Measures must be taken to track the perpetrator's movements, identify the perpetrator, and, if necessary, take the perpetrator into custody."

The expert also noted that Jang's frustration over not achieving his goal appears to remain high, pointing out, "He is still targeting the Vietnamese woman."

Furthermore, the expert suggested that Jang had likely given plenty of thought to the possibility of his identity being disclosed, stating, "Getting a haircut beforehand suggests he may have been conscious of how he would appear to the public."

Jang, who reserved his position on the intent to rape during his first trial last month, remains a concern. The expert emphasized, "When such a dangerous individual is released back into society, the risk of reoffending is extremely high," stressing that the case must be scrutinized with this gravity in mind.

Edited by Kim Hyo-jung | Produced by SBS Digital News