[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] "Have you heard of the movie Memories of Murder?" (Lawyer)
"Yes. I have seen it." (Lee Chun-jae)
"Did you have any interest in the cases you committed?" (Lawyer)
"I never had any interest or thought about it. I was not concerned about such things at all." (Lee Chun-jae)
On the afternoon of the 2nd, Lee Chun-jae appeared as a witness at the 9th hearing of the 'Lee Chun-jae 8th Case Retrial' held at Suwon District Court Criminal Division 12 (Chief Judge Park Jeong-je). He had previously testified that he was the real culprit in the serial murder cases that occurred in the Hwaseong area of Gyeonggi Province in the 1980s. He stated that he did not feel any guilt even while watching the movie Memories of Murder, which was inspired by these cases.
Regarding the scene at the end of the movie where actor Song Kang-ho looks directly at the camera, Lee Chun-jae said, "I have never thought about how I felt." Director Bong Joon-ho, who directed the film, explained at an event commemorating the 10th anniversary of the movie's release that "the final scene was intended to have the detective and the culprit make eye contact, anticipating that the culprit would attend this event." However, Lee Chun-jae said he felt no emotion even in this scene.
Lee Chun-jae also testified that he did not associate the movie Memories of Murder with himself. "The movie shows that when it rains, a murder occurs targeting a woman wearing a red dress, but there were many parts that differed from the facts, so I did not pay much attention." Although he thought it was about his story, some differences made him indifferent.
He also criticized the investigation at the time of the cases. He said, "I visited the police station a few times after the past cases," and added, "If the detective had investigated a little, I thought I might have been suspected at least once, but I think it was just a show investigation." When asked how he felt when he was on the suspect list, he answered, "I did not commit the crimes with any particular thoughts."
Lee Chun-jae testified that he has changed a lot since the time of the cases. When asked what had changed, he replied, "I am confident that I would not commit murder now." Although his answers showed no guilt about the past cases, the courtroom was filled with gasps, but he calmly continued speaking. "At that time, I had no plans and never thought about what I should do. I think I lived without any thoughts. There is a big difference from how I think now."
When asked what kind of thoughts he has while living in prison now, Lee Chun-jae said, "I am living my sentence diligently."
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