By Yun Suh-young
A U.S. prosecutor in charge of extradition proceedings with regard to the “Itaewon murder” case said the chances are low for a prime suspect to be returned to Seoul by April next year when the statute of limitations for the murder expires.
Arthur John Patterson, the suspect in the murder of Cho Joong-pil, then a 23-year-old student, in 1997 at a Burger King outlet in Itaewon, Seoul, is currently detained in a local county prison in California. He is undergoing extradition hearings at the request of the South Korean government.
“Extraditions often take several months or even years to complete. I believe this one will be slower than most. I do not expect the extradition to be resolved by April,” said Andrew Brown in an e-mail interview with The Korea Times.
Whether Patterson will be handed over to Seoul by April is crucial. It is believed that the 15-year statute of limitations for the murder expires in April though there are some conflicting views on this.
Under the Korean code of criminal procedure, if a suspect fled to avoid an investigation, the statute of limitations is frozen and renewed when the suspect is returned to the country. At the moment, as no charges were filed, the suspect is seen to have simply returned to his country in which case the statute of limitations ends in April.
The extradition process could take even longer if the suspect fights it, claiming his “right to be released from detention” (habeas corpus), the U.S. attorney said.
“Fugitives fighting extradition commonly file a habeas corpus petition after they have been ordered extradited, which at least temporarily stops the extradition,” said Brown. “Even after having their habeas corpus petition denied, fugitives may appeal that denial, further delaying their extradition.”
In April 3, 1997, the collegian was stabbed multiple times to death in the restroom of the hamburger chain. Patterson, then 17, and his then 18-year-old Korean American friend Edward Lee were two prime suspects. Patterson and Lee accused each other of murdering the victim.
Patterson was indicted for possession of an illegal weapon, and Lee on murder. Lee was acquitted later on appeal, and Patterson was released on a special amnesty. Patterson left for the U.S. after a Korean prosecutor failed to renew a travel ban by mistake.
Asked whether he believes Patterson is the murderer, Brown said, “There is evidence that supports the view that Patterson is the murderer, and evidence that supports the view that Lee is the murderer. Legally, however, both may be guilty of murder if they acted together, conspired together to commit the murder, or encouraged each other to commit the murder even though only one of them may have used the knife.”
If Patterson files for the petition, the extradition process will take even longer, elongating the already slow process. But there seems to be no magic spell the Korean government can use to speed up the procedures.
“There’s really not much that the Korean prosecution can do to speed up the process at the moment,” said a prosecutor at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office. “I guess the Ministry of Justice is doing its best at the moment but since there are laws and procedures to follow, there’s no short-cut to speed it up.”
Regarding the statute of limitations, however, the prosecutor said, “It’s probably difficult to say that he fled since he went back after finishing his sentence here and during the period when the travel ban was not renewed. So it’s probably right to see the statute of limitations ends in April.”