A man in his 20s accused of killing his mother-in-law and abducting his wife before fleeing to Gangwon State appeared in court for a hearing on whether he should be held in custody.
The suspect, identified only as A and accused of murdering a lineal ascendant of his spouse — his mother-in-law — arrived at the Seoul Eastern District Court at about 2:07 p.m. on the 13th with a cap and mask covering his face. He did not answer reporters who asked why he had killed his mother-in-law and whether he had planned the attack in advance, and walked into the courtroom. The court began the hearing at 2:30 p.m. A decision on detention is expected late in the day.
A, who was serving as a public service worker, is accused of killing his mother-in-law, a woman in her 50s, in Munjeong-dong, Songpa District, Seoul, on the morning of the 11th, then putting his wife, who is in her 20s, into a vehicle and driving her to Yangyang in Gangwon State. The mother-in-law was taken to a hospital in cardiac arrest and died. Police made an emergency arrest about seven hours after the crime, detaining A in a wooded hill in Yangyang County on suspicion of murdering a family elder (his mother-in-law) and aggravated unlawful confinement. His wife, found in the vehicle, was unharmed.
As he was transferred to the Songpa Police Station in Seoul at about 6:27 p.m. the same day, A gave a brief reply to reporters asking about his motive, saying he would talk about it during questioning. In police questioning he largely admitted the allegations but argued that the killing was not premeditated and happened on impulse, according to officials. He was also quoted as saying he had driven to Yangyang to get some air.
Police believe A acted out of resentment after his wife, who is in divorce proceedings with him, sought to amend her claim to seek annulment of the marriage on the grounds that she had been coerced into it.
Police had already been investigating a domestic violence case involving the couple. The case began on Aug. 22, when A filed a missing-person report asking police to find his wife. While confirming the whereabouts of the wife, identified only as B, the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul received a request not to disclose her location to her husband and learned that she had been a victim of domestic violence. After questioning B, the station transferred the case on Aug. 27 to the Suwon Gwonseon Police Station in Gyeonggi Province, which covers the couple's residence.
The Suwon Gwonseon station obtained statements from B, including that her husband had punched her in the head repeatedly, and concluded there were signs of habitual domestic violence. On Sept. 2 it gave her a smartwatch for personal protection and investigated whether she had suffered further harm. In the process it also obtained statements about other offenses and pursued compulsory measures against A, including a search and seizure.
But police failed to take A into custody for questioning. The search could not be carried out because A, a public service worker, did not report to his workplace, and he did not comply with a police summons scheduled for the 10th. Police rescheduled the questioning for the 13th, but A committed the crime two days before he was due to appear.
Protective measures for the victim also lapsed. Police had imposed temporary measures requiring A to leave B's residence and barring him from coming within 100 meters of her or contacting her by telecommunications. Those measures expired on Sept. 30. Concerned about further harm, the Suwon Gwonseon station applied again on Oct. 6 for a restraining order, but the crime occurred before the court ruled.
Police are investigating his specific motive and whether he planned the attack in advance, based on his statements and evidence collected at the scene.