It has been confirmed that the lead investigator repeatedly issued orders to ignore key evidence in the police investigation of Jang Yoon-gi (23), the perpetrator of a high school girl's murder, leading to the application of only simple murder charges.

The special investigation team for the "Truth Finding of the Jang Yoon-gi Case" under the National Office of Investigation held a briefing today (July 15) to announce the interim results of its investigation.

The special investigation team found that Inspector Park, a violent crimes team leader at the Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station who was in charge of the initial command of the Jang Yoon-gi case, instructed team members to "not focus on sexual motives," thereby limiting the scope of the investigation.

It was revealed that even after receiving a forensic interview report suggesting the need to examine sexual motives for the crime, Park omitted it from the investigation records.

Furthermore, it was discovered that Park ordered a report analyzing that the rear door of the vehicle appeared to be open when Jang was subduing the victim to be rewritten to state that the evidence was "unclear."

The special investigation team stated that Park also ordered the removal of specific details from an investigation report regarding stalking crimes committed by Jang against a part-time job colleague before the murder, and instructed that "sexual motives" be excluded when attaching other analytical reports.

Park's instructions were also behind the background that led to Jang's father, an active-duty police officer, destroying key evidence such as cable ties and a realistic doll.

Park allowed the vehicle and the suspect's studio apartment to be handed over to the family just one to three days after the incident, without securing physical evidence such as the cable ties.

On July 2, as the controversy over the so-called "lenient investigation" was spreading daily, Park did not follow orders from his superiors to additionally forward omitted materials, such as investigation reports, to the prosecution.

Instead, on the same day, he even ordered team members to delete on-site forensic footage that showed the cable ties.

The special investigation team referred Park to the prosecution today, applying charges including destruction of evidence, dereliction of duty, and abuse of power, as he was deeply involved in ensuring Jang was forwarded to the prosecution on charges of simple murder.

While Park claimed that he "judged that evidence such as cable ties and the realistic doll were not key evidence for the murder," he reportedly testified that there were "orders from higher-ups" regarding the background of why he did not link the stalking to the murder.

The special investigation team has also booked Park's direct superiors at the time, including the Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station chief and the head of the detective division, on charges including abuse of power.

Additionally, the team is investigating a police sergeant surnamed A, who belonged to the violent crimes team led by Park, on charges of leaking official secrets.

Sergeant A is accused of informing Jang's father about investigation information, including plans for search and seizure and arrest.

It was confirmed that the two had worked together in the past.

Oh Dong-wook, head of the special investigation team (Superintendent General), bowed his head and apologized, stating, "The investigator, who should have uncovered the truth of the case, instead concealed evidence of the crime, causing indelible pain to the bereaved family."

The special investigation team plans to continue investigating whether there were orders from superiors or external requests during the botched investigation of the Jang Yoon-gi case.

They also plan to verify the circumstances under which the Women and Juvenile Affairs Division investigated various sexual assault charges committed by Jang just before the murder separately from the murder act.

(Photo: Yonhap News)