"I committed it because I wanted to appear strong when drinking" statement
The police have decided to apply for an arrest warrant against Lee Mo (57), who is suspected of consecutively murdering two teahouse owners in the northern Gyeonggi region, on charges including robbery-murder.
The Gyeonggi Ilsan Western Police Station, which is investigating the case, announced on the 6th that it plans to apply for an arrest warrant against Lee on charges of robbery-murder for consecutively killing two teahouse owners in their 60s in Goyang and Yangju and stealing valuables.
Lee is suspected of strangling and killing a woman in her 60s, Ms. A, who was operating alone at an underground teahouse in Ilsan Seo-gu, Goyang, Gyeonggi, around 7 p.m. on December 30 last year.
He is also suspected of killing another woman in her 60s, Ms. B, the owner of a teahouse on the second floor of a building located in Gwangjeok-myeon, Yangju, Gyeonggi, around 8:30 a.m. on the 5th of this month.
The police conducted a detailed fingerprint analysis on the fingerprints collected at the scenes based on the similarity of the crime methods and the suspect’s description. They confirmed that the fingerprints found at both locations were identical. Additionally, CCTV footage showing Lee searching the stores and attempting to steal valuables after the crimes has also been confirmed.
If charged with robbery-murder, which involves taking a life for monetary gain, Lee will face more severe punishment. A police official explained, “Once the investigation into whether Lee stole valuables is completed, we will apply for an arrest warrant on charges of robbery-murder around this evening.”
Lee was apprehended around 10:45 p.m. the previous day in Gangneung, Gangwon, and was transferred to the Ilsan Western Police Station, where he is being questioned about the specific circumstances and motives of the crimes. It is known that Lee admitted to the crimes during the initial police investigation.
Lee stated, “Having spent a long time in prison, I felt weak and thought I was being looked down upon. I committed the crimes because I wanted to appear strong when I drank alcohol.”
He did not respond to questions about why he targeted only teahouses. However, the police believe that Lee revisited similar crime scenes because he has a past record of thefts involving stealing money from teahouses where women were alone. Lee is known to have been released from prison in November last year and has more than five prior convictions.
After committing the crimes in Goyang, Lee traveled around Yangju, Seoul, and other areas using taxis and buses before moving to the Gangwon region. It was also revealed that on the afternoon of the 2nd, around 6:30 p.m., while on the run, he dined and dashed at a pub in Paju, Gyeonggi.
The police plan to further investigate Lee’s motives and the details of the case while probing for any additional crimes.
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