"I Saw a Man and Woman Resembling Lee Eunhae and Jo Hyunsu"... Police Dispatched, Arrest Another Wanted Person

Lee Eun-hae (left) and accomplice Jo Hyun-soo, who are wanted for causing the death of her husband to claim insurance money. / Photo by Incheon District Prosecutors' Office

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Police responded to a 112 report claiming to have seen Lee Eun-hae (31) and her accomplice Jo Hyun-soo (30), who are wanted for the death of Lee's husband, but ended up arresting a different wanted person.

According to the Busan Police Agency on the 12th, at around 7:57 p.m. on the 7th, the Geumjeong Police Station in Busan received a report stating, "A man and woman resembling the suspects in the Gapyeong Yongsogyeok murder case are walking toward the commercial area in Seo 3-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan, carrying a pet dog."

The informant claimed, "They look very similar to Lee and Jo." In response, the police issued a 'Code Zero (0)' alert to apprehend the violent criminals as quickly as possible and dispatched four patrol cars and officers from the Seogeum Police Substation of Geumjeong Police Station to the scene.

Police arrived at the scene within two minutes and confirmed that the man and woman pointed out by the informant entered a barbecue restaurant in the commercial area. Upon entering the restaurant and questioning the man in his 30s, Mr. A, and woman, Ms. B, the police confirmed that they were not suspects in the Gapyeong valley murder case.

However, during identity verification, the police discovered that Mr. A was a wanted person charged with violating the Electronic Financial Transactions Act, and he was immediately arrested on the spot.

An officer who responded to the scene said, "Since they were wearing masks, they could have been mistaken for the valley murder suspects at a glance," adding, "After fully explaining the purpose of the questioning, Mr. A, who initially resisted, provided his resident registration number." The officer also stated, "Thanks to the citizens' strong sense of reporting, we were able to apprehend the wanted person."

Meanwhile, Lee and Jo remain at large as of the 12th, the 14th day since their public wanted notice. They are accused of murdering Lee's husband, Yoon (aged 39 at the time of death), in June 2019 at Yongsogyeok Valley in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province.

The prosecution is investigating the case as a planned murder aimed at claiming the 800 million won life insurance policy taken out in Yoon's name.

Additionally, they are also accused of attempted murder in February and May 2019 by feeding Yoon food mixed with pufferfish poison and trying to drown him in a fishing pond, but these attempts failed.