Wife of District Office Chief Killed Herself
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter
The wife of Kim Hyo-Gyeom, the head of Seoul's Gwanak District Office who was alleged to have accepted bribes, took her own life Friday.
According to police, the wife of Kim, identified only as Song, 53, was found in a valley near Mt. Cheonggye in Gyeonggi Province by a climber in the afternoon.
She was still alive and vomiting when she was found and had a one-third full, 500-milliliter bottle of an unnamed toxic substance by her, police said.
The woman was moved to Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital, but died early Saturday morning. It is thought she left no suicide note.
Police believe that she killed herself through poisoning, based on the testimony of a witness and medical reports.
But they will request an analysis of the substance by the National Institute of Scientific Investigation.
Song's son, 24, told police that she has been undergoing medical treatment for insomnia for a year and was hospitalized for depression after the investigation of Kim commenced.
``When Kim was indicted for bribery, Song seemed depressed and often said she wanted to die. She left for Chenggye Temple to obtain talisman Friday morning,'' he said.
She said she would shoulder the criticism directed at her husband, the son added.
``Song was confident that her husband would be cleared of suspicion but was shocked when he was indicted,'' a district official said.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office charged Kim with corruption Friday following a report from the Board of Audit and Inspection of Korea last November. Elected as the ward chief last September, Kim is alleged to have accepted five million won ($3,700) to appoint his relatives and friends to posts in the district office.
``Song was not one of the subjects of investigation. We did not summon her nor phoned her about this case. She is not related to it at all,'' a prosecutor said.