The family of 30-something Jang Mi-ran, who has been missing in Jeju for over three months, began taking direct tips after her story was made public. However, they are facing additional distress due to malicious prank calls, including people making groaning sounds.

Yesterday (August 19), Jang's family posted flyers on social media featuring a photo of Jang, who went missing last May, along with a summary of the disappearance case.

The flyer included the family's contact number to receive direct tips, but people making prank calls to this number have caused even greater pain for the family.

In a social media post yesterday, Jang's family wrote, "Our family is already going through an extremely difficult time," pleading, "Please refrain from making prank calls, such as making groaning sounds."

Furthermore, as some hateful comments were left on social media posts searching for Jang, they appealed, "We ask that you refrain from political agitation or political debates unrelated to the case through the comments," adding, "We posted this solely to find our family member."

Last May, Police Officer A, who received the initial missing person report, closed the case after reporting to Jang's family that they had "made contact with the missing person." However, after the family filed a second missing person report and police reviewed the case handling process, it was revealed that no record of actual communication with Jang existed, sparking controversy.

Subsequently, the Jeju Provincial Police Agency converted Police Officer A to a suspect status, investigating them on charges of dereliction of duty, while belatedly converting the case into a public investigation to search for Jang.

Reported by Kim Taewon | Video by Na Hong-hee | Graphics by Yang Hye-min | Produced by SBS Digital News