Serial Murders of Women in Yangcheon-gu, Seoul: Perpetrator Identified After 20 Years... DNA Reveals the Truth

Lured Victims to Basement, Committed Sexual Assault and Murder, Then Abandoned the Bodies
Case to Be Closed Due to Suspect’s Death and Lack of Prosecutorial Authority
No Connection to the "Yangcheon-gu Rabbit Mask Case" or Similar Incidents

The perpetrator of the "serial murders of women" that occurred in Sinjeong-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul in 2005 has been identified after 20 years.

Scene of the first serial murder case in Sinjeong-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul at the time of the crime. Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Violent Crime Unit announced on the 21st that it had identified Jang, the suspect in the series of murders of women that took place in the Sinjeong-dong area in 2005. However, Jang, who was in his early 60s at the time of the crimes, died of illness in 2015, so the case will be closed due to lack of prosecutorial authority.

Jang is accused of luring two female victims, one in her 20s and the other in her 40s, into a building’s basement storage, sexually assaulting and murdering them, and then abandoning their bodies. Jang, who worked as the building manager, is believed to have lured the victims-who visited the building on holidays-by telling them, “The first-floor door is locked; I will guide you to the basement.”

The first crime occurred in June 2005, and the second in November 2005. At the time, the police formed a dedicated investigation team of 38 members and conducted an eight-year investigation using various methods, but failed to find clear leads. As a result, the two cases were reclassified as unsolved cases in 2013.

Later, in 2016, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency established a dedicated “cold case team” and reopened the investigation. In 2016 and 2020, the National Forensic Service was asked to re-examine evidence from the crime scenes, and advances in DNA analysis techniques in 2020 provided a crucial breakthrough. The same DNA profile was found on evidence from both the first and second cases, such as underwear and rope, confirming that both crimes were committed by the same perpetrator.

The body of victim C, abandoned by the serial killer Mr. Jang in a parking lot in Sinjeong-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, in 2005. Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

Recognizing that the same person was responsible for both crimes, the police visited the scene hundreds of times and designated 231,897 people-including all current and former residents of Sinjeong-dong at the time-as investigation subjects.

They then comprehensively analyzed the methods of the crimes, the perpetrator’s occupation, and living arrangements, and collected DNA samples from 1,514 individuals prioritized for comparison. It was found that Jang attempted a similar sexual assault at the same location in February 2006, three months after the second crime, and was apprehended at that time. The police re-investigated the victim of that incident and also obtained meaningful statements from inmates who had served time with Jang.

The police expanded DNA comparisons to include not only living individuals but also the deceased. As a result, the DNA of one of 56 relevant deceased individuals matched the evidence from the crime scenes, and Jang, who had worked as a building manager near Sinjeong-dong at the time, was identified as the prime suspect.

The problem was that Jang had been cremated upon his death in 2015, making it impossible to obtain his remains, and most documents and items he had left behind were either copies or had deteriorated, making DNA comparison impossible. However, the police investigated 40 hospitals, clinics, and specimen testing companies in the Gyeonggi-do area where Jang had lived, and succeeded in securing his biological sample. The National Forensic Service confirmed that Jang’s DNA matched the DNA from the two crime scenes, allowing the police to finally identify him as the perpetrator.

Meanwhile, the police clarified that this serial murder case is in no way related to the so-called "Yangcheon-gu Rabbit Mask Case" that became known through media broadcasts.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency stated, “Although 20 years have passed since the incidents, we pursued the case to the end to bring closure to the victims and their families. Whether the perpetrator is alive or deceased, we will continue to investigate unsolved cases based on our principle of uncovering the truth.”