FOUR BODIES FOUND IN 72 HOURS AS SOUTH KOREAN POLICE SCANDAL DEEPENS

JEJU, South Korea — A major police scandal is unfolding on the popular holiday island of Jeju after four bodies were discovered within 72 hours, prompting authorities to investigate allegations that a police sergeant improperly closed hundreds of missing-person cases.

The officer, identified only as Sergeant Bu, has been arrested amid accusations that he prematurely ended investigations involving as many as 300 missing people and falsely told families that their loved ones had been found safe.

MISSING WOMAN FOUND AFTER 104 DAYS

Among the cases now under scrutiny is that of 37-year-old Jang Mi-ran, who disappeared more than three months before her body was discovered at a palm farm near her home.

Jang had reportedly been missing for 104 days when she was found on Monday. Authorities said her injuries were consistent with suicide.

Her family alleges that Sergeant Bu told them several days after her disappearance that Jang had been found safe. He allegedly told her boyfriend that she did not want contact with her family because she wanted to leave her previous life behind.

Investigators have reportedly found no evidence that Jang ever contacted police as claimed.

ANOTHER FAMILY RECEIVED THE SAME MESSAGE

A similar allegation has emerged from the family of a missing man in his 60s.

The man disappeared on June 28, and Bu was reportedly assigned to his case. According to his relatives, the officer again closed the investigation and told them the man had been found safe.

The family was allegedly told that he did not want to reveal his location.

His body was eventually discovered in Jeju City 51 days later.

Authorities said there were no apparent signs of foul play in his death.

FOUR BODIES DISCOVERED

The discovery of the two bodies came alongside the recovery of two other people who had also been reported missing on Jeju Island.

Police have not confirmed whether Bu’s alleged conduct was connected to those two cases.

Investigators are now reviewing nearly 300 missing-person reports that were handled by the sergeant.

Bu has been arrested, while four officers in his chain of command have reportedly been placed on administrative leave as authorities examine how the cases were handled.

NATIONAL OUTRAGE

The allegations have triggered scrutiny far beyond Jeju.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has ordered a thorough investigation into the handling of missing-person cases, while the country’s national police chief faced questioning at an emergency National Assembly hearing.

The police chief acknowledged that there had been a failure within the system, according to reports.

The scandal has raised disturbing questions about how missing-person investigations were recorded, monitored and closed — and whether families were given accurate information while their loved ones remained unaccounted for.

INVESTIGATION WIDENS

For families who were told that missing relatives were safe, the discoveries have brought a devastating realization that official assurances may not have reflected reality.

Authorities are now working through hundreds of cases to determine whether other investigations were improperly closed and whether additional victims could have been overlooked.

Four bodies found in just 72 hours have exposed allegations of extraordinary failures in South Korea’s missing-person system. As investigators review hundreds of cases, families are left asking a painful question: how many people may have remained missing while their loved ones were wrongly told they were safe?