Series of Kidnapping and Detention Cases in Cambodia... Renewed Spotlight on the Mysterious Deaths of BJ Ahyoung and Seo Sewon

Both BJ Ahyoung and Seo Sewon Die Under Suspicious Circumstances at Hospitals
Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Issue Travel Ban for Certain Areas in Cambodia

Recently, a series of incidents involving the kidnapping and confinement of Koreans in Cambodia have brought renewed attention to the deaths of the late BJ Ahyoung (real name Byun Ahyoung) and broadcaster Seo Sewon. Previously, in 2023, BJ Ahyoung traveled to Cambodia with an acquaintance, identified as A, and was found dead on the fourth day at a construction site in Kandal Province near the capital, Phnom Penh. At the time, the body of a Korean woman was discovered abandoned in a pit, and it was later revealed to be BJ Ahyoung. Local police subsequently arrested a Chinese couple in their 30s, who owned a hospital, on charges of abandoning her body. The couple claimed that BJ Ahyoung suddenly suffered a seizure and died after receiving an antibody injection at their hospital, and that they disposed of her body by loading it into a car and abandoning it.

Recently, incidents involving the kidnapping and confinement of Koreans in Cambodia have been occurring one after another, bringing renewed attention to the deaths of the late BJ Ahyoung (real name Byun Ahyoung) and broadcaster Seo Sewon. Photo by Asia Economy DB

However, it was reported that BJ Ahyoung's body showed signs of having been beaten. In addition, local police noted that "the victim's underwear was put on inside out," raising suspicions of sexual assault, although the suspect denied these allegations. Cambodian police then investigated whether the hospital operated by the Chinese couple had received proper authorization from health authorities and whether there was any malpractice during the medical procedure. Several TV programs, including SBS's "Unanswered Questions" and TV Chosun's "Investigative Report Seven," have delved into the mysterious circumstances surrounding BJ Ahyoung's death, but no clear cause of death or criminal charges have been identified.

The late Seo Sewon also died in Cambodia in April 2023, after suffering cardiac arrest while receiving an intravenous drip at a hospital in Phnom Penh. His sudden death was shocking and led to various suspicions. In particular, the hospital where Seo Sewon died was an unlicensed medical facility with no doctors and had not officially opened. The bereaved family requested that his body be transported to Korea for an autopsy, but due to local circumstances, a cremation was decided locally. As a result, numerous questions regarding the cause of death remain unanswered. Amid these incidents, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a Level 4 "Travel Ban" advisory for certain areas in Cambodia where cases of employment fraud and confinement have surged, effective from midnight on October 16, 2025, and has also raised the travel advisory level for other regions.