KB News Desk
Jang Mi-ran, whose missing-person case was allegedly closed on false grounds by a Jeju police officer, likely died early the morning after she disappeared, the Jeju Provincial Police Agency said Wednesday.
A Jeju police officer surnamed Bu told Jang’s boyfriend and family that he had spoken with her by phone after the boyfriend reported her missing on May 15, three days after she left the accommodation where she had been staying.
Bu allegedly told them that Jang was safe but did not want to be found.
Police, however, confirmed that Jang and Bu never spoke by phone after she disappeared.
“It is difficult to determine the exact time of death because the body was severely decomposed,” a police official said.
Police believe Jang left the accommodation where she had been staying at around 10:15 p.m. on May 12 and lost contact shortly afterward.
Cell-site records showed no movement associated with Jang’s phone after she left the residence, investigators said.
Police also found no signs of foul play and said they consider homicide unlikely.
Jang’s phone lost power on May 16, police said, adding that Jang and Bu did not know each other before the case.
