"Jeju Missing Person Case Falsely Closed Resembles 10-Year-Old 'Gyeongju Missing Person Case'" [True Story Investigation]

*This content was translated by AI.

The upcoming broadcast of MBC's "True Story Investigation" on the 10th will cover the Jeju missing person case.

◆ First True Story: The Disappeared People... The Disappeared Investigation

Jang, a woman who went missing in August, was found dead 104 days later at a palm tree farm in Hallim-eup, Jeju. Police estimated that Jang had hanged herself from a palm tree, but local residents raised suspicions of homicide, citing the dark scene with no lights and dense, sharp leaves.

However, as three months passed before Jang was found, most key clues, including CCTV footage, disappeared, making it difficult to verify her whereabouts. Amid growing controversy, the "True Story Investigation" production team captured a scene at the palm tree farm: a police officer who arrived at the scene was seen directly touching and bending the palm tree trunks to check their strength. Later, cameras recorded police officers recreating the circumstances of the body's discovery... What exactly happened to Jang that night?

A sergeant from the Jeju Western Police Department's Missing Persons Team falsely closed Jang's missing person report just two and a half hours after it was filed. A comprehensive investigation by the Jeju National Police Agency revealed that the sergeant had falsely closed a total of 25 missing person cases. Through acquaintances of another missing person, Park, whose skeletal remains were discovered around the same time as Jang's, the production team confirmed shocking facts that police had overlooked: an investigation concluded without thoroughly verifying the well-being of the missing persons. Could this have happened only in Jeju?

- "I thought those Jeju police officers were the same people"

A tip from Shin Sun-ae (pseudonym), who lost her younger brother 10 years ago, arrived for "True Story Investigation." Shin (pseudonym) stated that the two cases were so similar that she initially believed the officer handling her brother's missing person case was the same sergeant involved in the Jeju incident.

On the night of December 7, 2016, Shin's (pseudonym) younger brother disappeared after leaving behind the words, "I'm sorry, unnie." Police explained that four days after the missing person report, on December 11, their son's vehicle was captured on highway CCTV in the Gyeongju area. The family believed this and eagerly waited for him to return safely. However, two months later, the brother was found dead not in Gyeongju, but in Incheon, merely 500 meters from his residence. Yet, the black box recorder left in the vehicle contained circumstances completely different from the police's explanation: the brother's vehicle had been parked near a dike road in Incheon during the early hours of the 8th and had not moved even once. So, did the police truly see the brother's vehicle in Gyeongju?

Is this tragedy, repeated with a decade-long gap, merely the misconduct of some police officers, or is it a problem with a collapsed system? MBC's "True Story Investigation" traces the loopholes and hidden realities of missing person investigations for adults through these two cases.

◆ Second True Story: Money Without an Owner, 'Dementia Money'

- "Let's live together": Grandmother sells house for 500 million won at granddaughter's request; six months later found in a nursing facility?

Yeong-ae (pseudonym), a 76-year-old woman diagnosed with dementia three years ago, has lived alone since separating from her husband early on. Her greatest joy was her granddaughter. After her second son divorced and left the five-year-old granddaughter behind, Yeong-ae had raised the child like her own for the past 20 years. Even after the granddaughter grew up and moved to Seoul, Yeong-ae continued to support her with everything from housing deposits to tuition and living expenses, doting on her dearly. Was this hard work finally bearing fruit? One day, the granddaughter suddenly shared a dreamlike story with Yeong-ae: sell Yeong-ae's luxury villa in Jeju Island and combine it with the deposit for the Seoul home where the granddaughter was living to buy a house where they could live together. Yeong-ae eventually sold her property in Jeju and moved up to Seoul. However, six months later, she was found not in the house she had planned to share with her granddaughter, but in an unfamiliar nursing facility. The villa sale proceeds had already been transferred to the granddaughter...

- Father who even received a presidential medal, yet... only hundreds of millions of won disappeared after dementia?

Hwang (pseudonym), an 80-year-old man who dedicated his life to education, was known as a diligent and upright teacher who even received a presidential medal. He was always a meticulous and sharp father, but after dementia struck, Hwang (pseudonym) changed. He became unable to manage money calculations properly and could no longer accurately remember how much he had given to whom.

However, after her father was diagnosed with dementia last year, his daughter Yeon-jeong (pseudonym), who took over property management, encountered strange traces in the bank account. There were tire payment records despite him having stopped driving more than 10 years ago, as well as entries for cosmetic shops and restaurants frequented mainly by young women. Considering her father's usual spending habits, these transactions did not seem to be made by him directly; a large number of such suspicious items appeared. The person Yeon-jeong (pseudonym) suspects is Eom (pseudonym), who has had long-term contact with her father Hwang (pseudonym). However, after contracting dementia, Hwang (pseudonym) can only recall partial memories of why he spent that money or what transactions he made with whom; he cannot remember all the circumstances.

- At the moment memory was lost, who became the owner of a lifetime's savings?

What if the home and retirement funds accumulated over a lifetime disappear without one's knowledge after dementia? People who do not remember even after handing over money or selling their homes. Who should protect the money of someone who has lost their memory? MBC's "True Story Investigation" traces the whereabouts of money that disappeared alongside dementia.

◆ Third True Story: A Miracle Created with 'True Story Investigation', 'Peter Pan Dad' Jeon Kyung-cheol Passes Away

- 'True Story Investigation' conveys the final journey of Peter Pan Dad

Jeon Kyung-cheol, known as "Peter Pan Dad," whose story was shared through "True Story Investigation" in March and July, passed away on the 5th at the age of 64. Despite receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis, he tirelessly searched for a home for his severely autistic son, Je-won. Even after finding a residence for his son, Jeon poured all his remaining time into creating a community village where all the world's "Peter Pans" in similar situations could live. During this process, Mr. Jeon left a request with the "True Story Investigation" production team to record this final journey of his until the very end.

- From lying in state to the funeral procession... accompanying him on his final journey.

Following his wishes, "True Story Investigation" continued to document his life even after its July broadcast. Furthermore, they captured his final moments, including the lying in state and the funeral procession, on camera. This was done to record Mr. Jeon Kyung-cheol's final promise: that even after he left, the dream for other "Peter Pans" would continue.

What was the "Neverland" he wanted to achieve until his last breath? Today (10th), on Thursday night at 9 PM, MBC's "True Story Investigation" will broadcast Mr. Jeon Kyung-cheol's final moments. Meanwhile, the final journey of "Peter Pan Dad" Jeon Kyung-cheol toward his Neverland is scheduled to be depicted through a special documentary produced by MBC in the future.

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*This content was translated by AI.