"Our couple wants to know how our son got into the water"
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Son Hyun (50), the father of the late Son Jeongmin (22), who went missing and was found dead at Banpo Hangang Park in Seoul, raised several suspicions about the police investigation and appealed, "From the beginning until now, all my wife and I want to know is how our son ended up in the water."
On the 14th, Son posted a blog entry titled "50 Days and 500,000," saying, "Yesterday was the 49th day memorial for my son, so today is the 50th day. The Blue House national petition that started on May 28 has surpassed 500,000 signatures."
He continued, "I sincerely thank everyone for the great interest. Without that attention, this case would not have come this far and would have been closed as an accident long ago," adding, "I heard that there have been 245 petitions with over 200,000 signatures in the past three years, so you can understand the level of interest. I didn’t grasp the significance of 500,000 until I looked up the population, which is more than that of Jeju City," expressing his gratitude.
Son explained, "Several things have changed since the petition. The cellphone was found through a strange route, and it’s unclear where it was during that long period before the sanitation worker found it," adding, "The police obtained CCTV and black box footage, but they say there is nothing unusual. It was confirmed that the sneakers were discarded, and along with them, the T-shirt was also thrown away."
He also said, "Since the investigation is conducted by the police, I will mainly talk about the police investigation progress report," and mentioned suspicious points in the police investigation.
Son first stated, "There is photographic evidence showing my son, who went out at midnight after being called by a friend, was found unconscious within just three hours. Twenty minutes before that photo was taken, they were filming a video and having a good time," adding, "Since the witness took the photo some time after discovering him, the gap is estimated to be about 10 minutes. In that photo, the friend is as shown below," and posted a photo.
The photo showed Jeongmin lying on the ground with his friend A squatting right next to him.
He continued, "According to the autopsy results, the left scalp laceration and right cheek injury were not severe enough to be the cause of death," but pointed out, "However, I have never heard that the police are investigating how these injuries occurred or whether they are related to the circumstances of entering the water."
He also uploaded a screenshot of part of a witness statement from the police investigation progress report, saying, "The common point among all witnesses is that Jeongmin was not present during this time frame and that the two individuals separated, but I have never heard that an investigation into this is underway," criticizing the investigation.
Son said, "The most absurd fishing-related tip is described in almost a whole page. It seems like they want Jeongmin to have gone into the water no matter what, but they are forcing us to believe that a child with head wounds (left scalp lacerations of 3.3cm and 2.5cm) was bleeding, wearing clothes and shoes, and swimming by flapping his arms as he entered the water," he lamented.
Earlier, the police disclosed statements from seven people fishing near the scene on the day Jeongmin went missing, who said they saw a man entering the Hangang River or heard the sound of someone entering the water. However, it was reported that the identity of the man who actually entered the water was not determined.
Meanwhile, Son also questioned the report content stating, "Bloodstains were detected on clothing but all were confirmed to be his own, so no unusual findings."
He raised his voice, saying, "Blood was found on the shirt’s shoulder and neck area, so it’s definitely blood from the head wound. If he entered the water bleeding like that and you say there’s nothing unusual, isn’t that too much?"
Additionally, Son raised objections regarding ▲ the insufficient explanation for why friend A, who was not usually close, suddenly suggested drinking alcohol ▲ discrepancies between witness statements and police announcements about why friend A rummaged through Jeongmin’s pockets while he was lying down.
He also said, "These are still strange points I am pointing out from the police investigation progress announcements, and there are many suspicions I want resolved. Even if it takes time, I hope they will be thoroughly checked," adding, "I want to hear answers not from the suspect’s lawyer, who is not even a suspect, nor from an unknown relative, but directly from the friend himself, who is an adult. We just want to know."
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