Seoul police to review 92,800 missing-person cases amid gaps in adult disappearance handling

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said Monday it will conduct a full review of more than 92,800 child and adult missing-person cases closed over roughly the past three years, amid growing scrutiny over how police handle adult disappearances following the case of Jang Mi-ran, 37, who went missing on Jeju Island.

The review aims to determine whether any cases were closed without officers directly confirming the missing person's safety in person or through an equivalent method.

Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency Commissioner Park Jeong-bo, speaking at a regular press briefing Monday at the agency's headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, said the agency had received and closed more than 92,800 missing-person reports from Jan. 1, 2024, through last week. "We are checking whether any cases were missed — excluding those closed through direct in-person contact or an equivalent method such as a direct phone call," he said.

Park added that adult missing-person cases can invite complacency because many turn out to be ordinary runaways. "We will be thorough to make sure that does not happen," he said.

Since November 2024, the Seoul agency has enforced guidelines requiring officers to confirm a missing person's safety through direct in-person contact or an equivalent method before closing a case. Acceptable equivalents include video calls or connecting the reporting family directly with the missing person by phone.

A police official said the change came after incidents in which a phone call was answered not by the missing person but by a perpetrator, leaving the case improperly verified. "We plan to complete the full review by the end of November," the official said.

Meanwhile, police said they discovered a body believed to be that of Jang, who went missing in May, at around 10:46 a.m. Monday during a joint search operation near Hallim-eup in Jeju. Police said they are working to confirm the exact identity of the deceased and the circumstances of the death.