![Police prepare for an intensive search at Hallim Port in Hallim-eup, Jeju, on Thursday for Jang Mi-ran, who has been missing for three months amid criticism of inadequate initial handling of the case, including the premature closure of her missing persons report. [Yonhap]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/08/22/rcv.YNA.20260820.PYH2026082009170005600_P1.jpg)
A teenage male was arrested Saturday in connection with the disappearance of a woman in Jeju after making repeated prank calls to the missing woman's family, police said.
The Korean National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters arrested the suspect, identified only as A, on charges of violating the Stalking Punishment Act. A had sent text messages and made prank calls 17 times to a contact number the family had made public, claiming he would help find the missing woman if they sent him moaning sounds.
Police also issued an emergency protective measure against A — a prohibition on contact via telecommunications.
"False tips and prank calls targeting the missing person's family, as well as the spread of unverified information online and acts of mockery and disparagement, constitute serious secondary harm and may be punished under relevant laws," a police official said.
Jang Mi-ran, 37, left her home in Hallim-eup, Jeju, on the night of May 12 and has not been located in more than three months.
yjc@heraldcorp.com
