A 47-year-old woman and her 43-year-old brother are suspected of murdering their 78-year-old father on May 8, which is Parents’ Day in Korea, in what appears to be a premeditated crime.

The two are exercising their right to remain silent. During a police interrogation on Tuesday at Gwangju Bukbu police station, they refused to wear masks in front of the press claiming they had nothing to hide as they are innocent. The police were forced to cover their faces for them. 

In Korea, disclosure of a suspect’s identity is only allowed if the crime is of a violent nature, such as murder or rape, with ample evidence pointing to the suspect’s guilt and provided the suspect is of legal age.

A police officer who wished to remain unnamed said that the victim’s body had been mutilated beyond recognition and that prior to their arrest, the police had naturally assumed the suspects to have had a spiteful relationship with the victim. 


According to police reports, the siblings had planned to run away after committing the crime. Two days prior to the murder, they had asked their landlord to return the deposit on their home and reserved a date with a moving company.

Both were unmarried and had moved out from the victim’s house roughly seven years ago, in 2009 after their mother passed away due to a traffic accident.

On Sunday, the day of the crime, they had arrived at their father’s house and waited for him to return from a female friend’s house. It was not revealed whether they had scheduled to meet him for Parents’ Day.

Surveillance camera records showed the victim arriving at his apartment at around 8 a.m.

An hour later, the siblings were recorded leaving the apartment in different clothes. 


The police said the body had been found inside the house, at the bottom of a giant rubber basket with layers of blankets placed on top to mask the smell.

So far, the police investigation has revealed that the sister had reported abuse by her father in 2010 and 2011. In 2011, she had on two occasions succeeded to acquire injunctions to keep him away.

She has a record of working as a missionary at a church, however, she had not been active there lately.

Her brother had studied for a government position for a long period, according to those who knew him.

The victim’s female friend had testified that the deceased had stayed at her place for refuge after having been allegedly threatened by his son to hand over his house deed.

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)