A police team leader accused of destroying evidence—specifically zip ties that could have been used as binding tools—during the investigation into the murder of a high school student by Jang Yoon-gi (23), appeared for a pre-arrest warrant hearing on Wednesday, July 8.

Inspector A, assigned to the Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station, who was emergency-arrested on charges of evidence destruction, attended the hearing held at the Gwangju District Court in Dong-gu, Gwangju, this morning.

Upon exiting the police transport vehicle, Inspector A did not respond to questions from reporters asking if he admitted to the charges, if he had anything to say, or if he had a message for the victim's family.

Covering his face with a white mask and a hat, Inspector A quickly pushed past the reporters who gathered as he stepped out of the vehicle and headed inside.

After the hearing concluded, he returned to the transport vehicle without answering questions regarding whether he felt unfairly accused or had any final comments.

Inspector A is accused of destroying the zip ties while searching the SUV used by Jang Yoon-gi before and after the murder, which took place on May 5.

Evidence footage recording the scene shows Inspector A speaking with several team members, discovering a bundle of zip ties in the passenger-side storage compartment of the SUV, and leaving them behind without securing them as evidence.

The missing zip ties were later discovered by the prosecution during a search of the residence of Jang Yoon-gi's father, who is a serving police officer. Investigations revealed that the father had taken them from the vehicle.

At the time of the warrant hearing, the bereaved family of the victim, the late Lee Chae-won, and civic groups held a press conference in front of the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency to condemn the police for their poor investigation and attempted cover-up.

They stated, "The police were not investigators upholding the law, but accomplices who acted as one with the perpetrator, handling the case poorly and systematically covering it up," and urged, "We condemn the police authorities for trying to hide the substantive truth and demand that the police officers who protected the murderer Jang Yoon-gi be held legally accountable."

The police, who had been conducting an internal inspection regarding various allegations surrounding the case, shifted to a formal investigation after discovering clues to substantiate the charges. On Tuesday, July 7, they placed six individuals on leave, including the Gwangsan Police Station chief, the head of the detective division at the time, and four members of the investigation team.

Inspector A, for whom an arrest warrant was requested, has been relieved of his duties.

(Photo: Yonhap News)