Police special investigation team raids Gwangju police chief's office in Jang Yun-gi case probe

The Korean National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters special investigation team, probing allegations of investigative misconduct in the Jang Yun-gi murder case, has raided the offices of the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency chief and the Gwangsan Police Station chief, widening its investigation to the command structure that oversaw the original case.

The special investigation team dispatched investigators Saturday to seven locations — including the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency chief's office and the Gwangsan Police Station chief's office — to execute search and seizure warrants. The targets reportedly included three offices within the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency, two within Gwangsan Police Station, and the current workplaces of individuals connected to the case.

The raids follow the detention of Inspector A, who led the Gwangsan Police Station investigation team handling the Jang case, on charges of evidence destruction, and mark an expansion of the probe to senior officials involved in the command and reporting process at the time. The special investigation team plans to examine seized mobile phones, computers and work records to determine whether anyone was aware of — or turned a blind eye to — the omission of evidence or the leaking of investigative information.

At the center of the investigation is how a cable tie found in the sport utility vehicle Jang used in the crime was never secured as formal evidence. The cable tie could support the possibility that Jang had prepared it to abduct or restrain his victim, making it critical to establishing charges of murder in the course of rape.

The investigation team at the time is suspected of finding the cable tie inside Jang's vehicle before forensic investigators arrived on the scene, yet failing to include it on the list of seized items. Allegations have also emerged that part of the footage recorded inside the vehicle was deleted. The special investigation team is investigating whether Inspector A ordered the suppression of evidence or the destruction of related records.

Police arrested Inspector A on an emergency basis Monday and applied for an arrest warrant on charges of evidence destruction. A court issued the warrant Wednesday. The Korean National Police Agency relieved Inspector A of his duties and placed the then-chief of Gwangsan Police Station, the head of its detective division, and other personnel connected to the case on standby, removing them from their posts.

Meanwhile, Jang has been indicted on charges of killing a high school girl on a pedestrian path in Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, on May 5, after attempting to drag her toward his vehicle to sexually assault her and stabbing her when she resisted. He also faces charges of seriously wounding a male student who ran to the scene after hearing her screams.