The Jeju District Prosecutors' Office searched the Jeju Provincial Police Agency and the Jeju Western Police Station simultaneously on the 8th as part of its investigation into missing-person reports that were falsely closed.
According to the prosecutors' office, the searches covered the criminal affairs division of the provincial police agency, as well as the station chief's office, the criminal affairs division, the missing-persons team and the duty office at the Western Police Station, along with the National Police Agency headquarters. The searches, which began in the morning and lasted more than nine hours, were carried out so that prosecutors could directly examine how the police handle missing-person cases, according to sources.
Investigators reviewed digital records to determine how the police system for missing-person cases is operated and managed. In the process, they also obtained online messenger conversations among police officers, sources said.
The investigation team also searched a division of the Jeju Police Station that had conducted a full review of 298 missing-person cases closed by the suspect, a senior patrol officer identified only as A. The searches yielded digital evidence including internal messenger conversations among officers.
The officer is suspected of falsely closing missing-person reports filed in May and July this year for a woman in her 30s, surnamed Jang, and a man in his 60s, surnamed Park. Prosecutors took over the case from the police on the 1st of this month and have been reviewing related materials.
