Police investigate possibility of ‘sexual purpose’ motive for murder of Japanese woman in Cheonan (comprehensive)

(Cheonan = Yonhap News) Reporter Byun Seon-jin = In a situation where many questions are being raised about the motive of the crime claimed by a man in his 30s who killed a Japanese woman in her 20s whom he met only three times in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, the police are intensively investigating the crime while also opening the possibility of a crime committed for sexual purposes.

According to Yonhap News coverage on the 31st, it was confirmed that the murdered person B (20s, Japanese nationality) had nothing on his upper body when he was found.

Mr. A (30s), who was arrested on the 30th of this month on suspicion of murder, killed Mr. B with a weapon at an officetel in Dujeong-dong, Seobuk-gu, Cheonan City, at around 4:20 pm on the 28th, two days ago, and then ran away to Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do and was caught early the next day.

During the police investigation, Mr. A stated, "I decided to die after losing about 5 million won through stock investment, but I was afraid of dying alone, so I tried to die with Mr. B," the police explained.

It was found that Mr. A, who had been working short-term part-time jobs, was virtually unemployed.

However, there were many views that were full of questions about the motive for the crime and his whereabouts after the crime, such as why he claimed to have chosen Mr. B, whom he met only three times, as his partner, and why he ran away to Jeonju, over 100 km away, after committing the crime.

However, as it has been confirmed that the murdered Japanese woman had nothing on her upper body at the time of her death, the possibility that 'sexual purposes' was the likely motive for the crime cannot be ruled out.

Until this morning, the local police station investigating this case had maintained that this case was not related to sexual crimes.

When Yonhap News later requested confirmation of the victim's condition at the time of discovery, an official from the South Chungcheong Police Agency explained, "We are investigating from various angles while leaving open the possibility of a sexual crime."

Currently, the police are confirming the truth of Mr. A's statement and the exact motive for the crime through cell phone forensics.

According to the police investigation, Mr. B met Mr. A in Korea in September and re-entered the country in the middle of this month on a short-term stay. The day of the crime was the third meeting between the two.

It was determined that they were not in a romantic relationship, and there was no history of stalking-related reports.

It has not yet been confirmed how the two people found out. Although Mr. A stated the circumstances of their meeting, the police say that it is difficult to confirm this based on Mr. A's claim alone because Mr. B's cell phone is locked.

Major Japanese media, including NHK and Kyodo News, are also showing interest by reporting on this incident one after another.

In particular, a Japanese online media outlet reported that after the incident became known, "there has been a series of responses on social networking services (SNS) asking if the two people met through a language exchange app." The media also introduced past cases of problems related to people met through language exchange apps and pointed out that caution is needed when meeting in person.

Mr. B's bereaved family is said to have requested severe punishment in an interview with the police the day before.