As the number of foreign tourists visiting Jeju rises each year, overseas media outlets are turning their attention to a case in which a police officer falsely closed missing-person reports on the island.
A Japanese terrestrial broadcaster visited a palm tree field in Hallim-eup, Jeju City, on the morning of the 27th to report on the case of a police sergeant surnamed Bu, in his 30s, who was arrested on charges of falsely closing a missing-person report.
Jang Mi-ran, 37, went missing after leaving a long-stay accommodation in Hallim-eup on the afternoon of May 12. Her body was found at the site three days ago, and police tape remains in place.
From Japan to Reuters, Singapore and British Outlets
A broadcaster official who visited the site said Jeju is drawing attention because it is a destination frequented by Japanese tourists, but added that there was no particular sense of concern about traveling to Jeju. A day earlier, Japan's Fuji TV also reported on the case with a focus on the officer's false closure, describing Jang's disappearance, the search and the discovery of her body.
Beyond Japanese outlets, Reuters and The Associated Press also gave the case significant coverage. The AP reported that the discovery of four bodies in four days has sent shock waves across Jeju, a popular resort island that draws more than 13 million domestic and foreign visitors a year.
Reuters reported that President Lee Jae-myung said at a Cabinet meeting the previous day that "the police are likely to become the state institution with the greatest authority," adding that "responsibility must be strengthened in proportion to the scale of that authority."
The Week, a U.S. news magazine, reported that Bu closed 298 missing-person cases over the past 17 months, with about 10 of them raising suspicions of premature closure. It also reported that four senior officers at the Jeju Western Police Station have been removed from their posts as the fallout widened.
Those affected are the current station chief, the chief at the time Jang was reported missing, the head of the criminal investigation division and the team leader in charge of missing-person cases. The National Office of Investigation is said to have launched an internal inspection to examine responsibility for management and supervision.
Behind the heightened attention from foreign media is the rapid growth in foreign tourists visiting Jeju. According to Tourism Leisure Newspaper, the number of foreign tourists who visited Jeju in the first half of this year rose 31.9% from the first half of 2024.
Domestic tourists, by contrast, fell 6.4% over the same period, underscoring the growing share of foreign visitors in Jeju's tourism market. As foreign visitors increase, overseas media interest in local security and safety issues appears to be rising accordingly.
Bu, of the Jeju Western Police Station, is accused of filing a false report about two and a half hours after receiving the missing-person report on Jang on the afternoon of May 15, claiming that contact had been made with the missing person, and closing the case on false grounds.
On the 2nd of last month, he also falsely closed a missing-person report for a man in his 60s in a similar manner five and a half hours after receiving it. The man was found dead 55 days after he went missing.
