Anger growing against man dumping daughter's body

By Lee Kyung-min

Public outrage is growing against a man, surnamed Koh, who had put on a show for weeks after reporting to law enforcement authorities that his five-year-old daughter went missing.

The “heartless” father recently confessed to dumping his daughter’s body eight months ago, claiming she died after choking on food.

According to the Jeonbuk Provincial Police Agency in North Jeolla Province, Koh even went on a trip with the family of his girlfriend on April 28, a day after the alleged killing occurred, and posted messages boasting about a series of toy Gundam figures he assembled.

Such behavior is markedly different with how heartbroken and devastated he looked when he filed a missing persons report for his daughter with police early this month.

Both Koh and his alleged accomplice, a woman surnamed Kim, the mother of his girlfriend surnamed Lee, are suspected of disposing of the body on a hillside in Gunsan on April 27.

Koh told police his daughter died after choking on food while under the care of Kim, adding he buried the body with Kim who said a child who died should be buried quickly. Koh and Kim have been arrested. Police will seek an arrest warrant for Lee soon.

Police said Koh and Lee first came to the police station on Dec. 8, saying his daughter disappeared on Nov. 18.

The two, according to police, had exhibited a great degree of desperation and anger, convincing enough for officers to believe their sincerity.

Koh yelled for an extensive period of time while staying there, saying he could not live without his daughter, while Lee told officers how close she was with the girl.

Koh even handed out leaflets he made asking his coworkers at a factory in Wanju, pleading with them to report sightings of anyone looking like his daughter.

However, the seemingly credible attitude changed after police began questioning the two over a series of suspicious aspects of the case including why it took more than two weeks for them to call the police about his daughter’s disappearance.

When officers asked Koh for an explanation as some of statements and his account of what happened did not make sense, instead of giving straight answers, he lashed out by saying “Am I a victim who lost a daughter or am I a suspect? I cannot cooperate with the investigation if you treat me this way.”

Unlike most parents with a missing child, who tend to fully cooperate with investigators, Koh and Lee easily became defensive and angry, thereby excusing themselves from having to answer crucial and sensitive questions, police said.

Police will continue questioning them over how and why the girl died. They have not ruled out child abuse resulting in death, given the girl had two surgeries for head and forehead injuries that required stitches on Feb. 23 and March 19.

The investigation launched two weeks ago picked up speed over the weekend after police found the body of the girl wrapped in a towel in a 30-centimeter-deep hole under a tree in Gunsan following Koh’s confession late Thursday.

National Forensic Service said Saturday the body was too decomposed to identify the cause of her death.