Couple detained for stuffing mother’s body in suitcase
On 31 March, a married couple were arrested for placing the wife’s mother’s body in a suitcase before leaving it in a stream in Daegu, South Korea.
A passerby had discovered the suitcase and reported it to the authorities on the same day.
Police investigation revealed that the victim died while trying to protect her daughter from being assaulted by her husband.
Couple abandoned suitcase in a stream
According to Chosun, police identified the 55-year-old victim through fingerprint and DNA analysis.
After further investigation, they determined the woman’s daughter, Ms Choi, 26, and son-in-law, Mr Jo, 27, as suspects.
Source: News1 via The JoongAng
The police had also found CCTV footage showing the couple dragging a suitcase out of their residence and abandoning it in Sincheon Stream, leading to the couple’s arrest on the same day the body was discovered.
During questioning, the couple reportedly confessed that the son-in-law had beaten the victim to death.
Victim died trying to protect her daughter from domestic abuse
Police believed that the man may have used his fists and feet to assault the victim.
However, there were no visible signs of homicide on the victim’s body, so other causes of death, such as poisoning, are being considered.
Initially, the police were investigating the possibility of family conflict, such as financial issues.
However, on 3 April, they revealed that the mother had died trying to protect her daughter from domestic violence.
Husband assaulted wife and mother-in-law
Police said the victim was living with the couple in Gyeongsan, a city near Daegu.
However, the husband soon began assaulting his wife after they got married last September.
The assaults will occur even in front of Ms Choi’s mother.
She reportedly begged her mother to leave, not wanting her mother to watch her be abused.
But the victim refused, fearing the assault on her daughter would worsen if she left.
In February, the couple moved to a studio apartment in Daegu, and since then, Mr Jo began assaulting his mother-in-law.
On 18 March, he beat his mother-in-law to death, claiming she was “making noise in the house”. He then placed her body in a suitcase and left it in a stream with the help of his wife.
Source: News1 via Chosun
Husband threatened wife not to report mother’s killing
Police revealed that neither the victim nor Ms Choi had reported any domestic violence.
“It appears they were unable to report it because Mr Cho monitored [the women] and even controlled their phone calls,” a police official told Chosun.
Ms Choi was also unable to report her mother’s killing, as her husband threatened to assault her and constantly followed her at home and outdoors.
Police have arrested Mr Jo on charges of parricide and abandonment of a corpse, and Ms Choi on charges of abandonment of a corpse.
They also plan to investigate Mr Jo’s domestic violence against his wife.
Also read: Body found stuffed in suitcase with throat slit in M’sia identified as 31-year-old financial advisor
Body found stuffed in suitcase with throat slit in M’sia identified as 31-year-old financial advisor
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Featured image adapted from News1 via The JoongAng.
