Late Son Jeongmin Son's Father: "I Feel Upset Because Friend Called My Collapsed Son 'Geugeo'"

Photo by Son Hyun, captured from blog

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] Son Hyun (50), the father of Son Jeongmin (22), who was found dead after going missing in the Han River, has been continuously expressing his feelings of injustice on his blog.

On the 26th, Son Hyun posted an article titled "Disappearing Traces" on his blog. Son said, "My heart is always urgent and time is insufficient," and added, "Those who have had family members suffer unexpected incidents would know that after filing a death report, certain unavoidable changes occur."

Son explained, "One of the most painful things is the mobile phone," saying, "Once it is confirmed that the owner has died, the phone number is flagged as a fraudulent subscription risk, and if the ownership is not changed or the service not canceled, it will be sequentially suspended and eventually terminated by the carrier." He continued, "Since I cannot delete my son's number, I have to change the ownership. Many changes are expected in social networking services (SNS) and other areas, so there is a lot to save beforehand, but time is not on my side."

He added, "Withdrawals from bank accounts are also stopped, and the subscription for the application where my son collected his favorite music is not being paid monthly, so it is difficult to make changes," and lamented, "There are various accounts my son had for which I do not know the passwords, and I hate that the traces disappear, but I cannot control it." Son also explained his situation, saying, "The school said that if I do not withdraw in such cases, the student is expelled, so I had no choice but to process the withdrawal. My son would never have wanted to quit school. Someday, I will have to settle the accounts as well."

Additionally, Son attached a screenshot of an actual voice conversation of friend A, which was broadcast on SBS's "Unanswered Questions" episode titled "Suspicions, Memories, and Rumors - The Secret of the Death of the Missing University Student in the Han River." The image contains A’s statement during the conversation: "So when I was pulling him (Son Jeongmin, who had collapsed) up, if you look at my clothes and shoes, they are completely covered in dirt."

Son expressed dissatisfaction, saying, "After my son collapsed, (A) referred to him as 'that'." Son said, "At the time, I was too overwhelmed to notice, but every time I think about it, being called 'that' makes me very upset," and added, "At this point, 'that' probably does not mean he was alive. From now on, I think I will have to use 'that' in the same way."