By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
A riot police officer who guarded the National Assembly has been found dead in an apparent suicide.
But bereaved family members are demanding authorities investigate the exact cause of death, claiming he had no reason to kill himself.
The 19-year-old officer, identified as Kim and who belonged to the guard unit for the Assembly, was found hanging from a staircase of a studio apartment building in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul, around 4 p.m. last Friday. A janitor of the building found him and reported it to the police.
Police believe Kim committed suicide as no wounds were found in an autopsy.
Kim was the suspect of a theft that recently took place in his unit. Expecting punitive measures, he had gone absent without leave, according to police. The guard unit said it found that he was not the target of bullying among his peers and seniors.
But his family members claim that Kim, having a bouncy and sociable personality, was unlikely to have killed himself, and demanded authorities verify the exact cause of death. His family is refusing to hold a funeral for him until this is done.