Seongbuk-gu murder victim had reported parental abuse to teacher earlier this year

A 15-year-old girl killed by a man in his 50s in Seoul's Seongbuk-gu had told her homeroom teacher earlier this year that her parents were abusing her, and the two filed a police report together, it has emerged.

The school moved to provide tailored support, but the victim, identified only as A, dropped out in July and was subsequently referred to an out-of-school youth support center.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on Thursday, A sent a message to her homeroom teacher at a middle school in Nowon-gu, Seoul, on Jan. 21, saying she had been subjected to ongoing child abuse by her parents and was living at a youth shelter.

The following day, A and the teacher reported the parents to police on suspicion of child abuse.

After learning that A had been moving between shelters, the school decided to provide tailored financial support and other assistance.

The homeroom teacher also made repeated attempts to contact A to check on her safety and emotional well-being.

In June, however, A visited the school with her mother for counseling and submitted an application under a school dropout deliberation program — a system designed to give students considering dropping out a period of counseling and career exploration to help them make a more considered decision.

A attended school for the last time on July 1 and was placed on out-of-enrollment management on July 3 due to insufficient attendance. The measure keeps a student on the school register while removing them from the active enrollment count.

From August onward, A's information was referred to an out-of-school youth support center that sent text message guidance and conducted phone consultations with her guardian.

The youth shelter where A had previously stayed was reportedly unaware of the domestic conflict she had experienced or that she had been a victim of sexual exploitation.

A was killed in the early hours of Wednesday at a short-term rental accommodation in Jeongneung-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul. The suspect, identified only as B, is the father of a man in his 20s who had been referred to prosecutors on suspicion of having sexual relations with A, who was a minor. Police arrested B on an emergency basis and are investigating the motive and circumstances of the crime.