Last October 14th, Lee Chun-jae, 56, has been formally booked as a suspect in the Hwaseong serial murder case. "We decided to reopen the case because we judged that it is the duty of the police to find out the truth of the case," the investigation team of the Gyeonggi Southern Police Agency said in a briefing on October 15th. The Hwaseong case is the most representative and long-term unsolved case and the subject of national division, so the police will investigate the case to the end even if the statute of limitations is completed.

▲ Lee Chun-jae has been booked as a suspect in the Hwaseong serial murder case.

The Hwaseong serial killings were a series of 10 women who were raped and murdered in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi from 1986 to 1991. It was the worst unsolved case because it remained a mystery for over 30 years. Most of the victims were raped and strangled with a scarf or with their own clothes. Some of them were damaged cruelly. It was one of the nation's top three unsolved cases.

▲ The Hwaseong serial killings were a series of 10 women who were raped and murdered.

Last September 19th, it came out into the open that three of Hwaseong serial murder case's evidences' DNA and the suspect's DNA are matched. Police offered part of the evidences' appraisal that were purported at the scenes at the NFS, and there was a man who accorded with evidences' purported at the scenes' DNA. Most especially, at the ninth case, suspect Lee's DNA was found in the victim's underwear. Suspect Lee was a prisoner at the prison of Busan on charges of his wife's younger sister who he raped and murdered in 1994, in Cheongju.

▲ Lee was a prisoner on charges of his wife`s younger sister who he raped and murdered.

Unfortunately, even if the connection between the accused and the serial killer on Hwaseong is confirmed, the case is expected to be eventually cleared of prosecution as "no right to indict" It is because the case is statute-barred. Korea's statute of limitations was abolished by the law of Taewan, but this law was applied again on the cases after August 8th, 2000. However, even if it just means we cannot put it on trial, it does not mean that clarification of the truth is impossible.

Oct. 19th, 2019

by Pyo Seung Hui