Some 210,000 people sign petition calling for the death penalty for woman who killed ex-husband, dismembered body
On the day of the murder, Koh Yu-jeong allowed her ex-husband to meet their son for the first time since their divorce. “Even life imprisonment would be lenient for her," a brother of the victim said. Police find bone parts at an Incheon waste recycling plant, on the other side of the country.
Seoul (AsiaNews/Agencies) – More than 210,000 South Koreans have signed an online petition in favour of the death penalty for Koh Yu-jeong (pictured), a 36-year-old woman who confessed to killing her ex-husband last month on Jeju Island, off the southern coast of the country, dismembering his body and disposing of the parts.
On 7 June, a petition was launched on the website of the South Korean presidency (Cheong Wa Dae or Blue House), asking that she be executed.
"I want a death penalty. Even life imprisonment would be lenient for her," a brother of the victim, surnamed Kang, 36, wrote on the petition. "I hope the court will show that our justice system works for victims, not criminals,” he added.
“I have not had a full night's sleep since the incident,” he explained. “I don't really feel hunger. I have searched for his body in steams and forests because I could not stand it if I didn't do anything."
Police arrested Koh on 1st June at her home in Cheongju, the capital of North Chungcheong province. She is charged with killing Kang at a vacation home in Jocheon-eup, a remote town on Jeju Island, on 25 May.
For the first time since her divorce two years earlier, she had allowed her ex-husband to meet their son. Koh had custody of the child, who is now four years old.
According to police, Kang loved his son and wanted to see him, but Koh denied his request without a clear reason, prompting him to seek court permission, which was eventually granted.
On the day of the murder, the three spent a day at a theme park before returning to the pension where they were staying. Here, according to police, Koh stabbed Kang to death and dismembered the body.
Two days after the assassination, she used his phone to send a text message to her and create an alibi. Meanwhile, Kang's family filed a missing person report.
On 28 May, on route to Wando Island, Koh disposed some of the body parts in plastic bags into the sea.
The following day, she stopped at a flat in Gimpo (northern province of Gyeonggi), where she destroyed the remaining body parts.
On 5 June, four days after she was taken into custody, police recovered bone parts believed to be from Kang at an Incheon waste recycling plant, on the other side of the country from where the murder occurred.
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