Man Gets 18 Years for Killing, Secretly Burying Girlfriend

The news of that day has passed, but its meaning remains with us today. "Today's That Day" reads the present through records of the past.

"I'm sorry. I was wrong."

On March 15, 2016—ten years ago—the truth behind the disappearance of a woman in her 20s in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, finally came to light. Police arrested a man in his 30s who had been living with the victim, and he confessed to killing his girlfriend and secretly burying her body.

Investigation Begins with Missing Person Report—Suspicious Footage Found on CCTV

The case began on February 17 of that year. Around 9 a.m., Anyang Dongan Police Station received a report from a woman's older sister stating that her sibling, identified as Ms. A (22), had suddenly vanished. The sister said she had been unable to reach her for several days.

When police launched their investigation, Lee (36), who had been living with Ms. A, claimed that "my girlfriend, who had been living with me for about a month, packed her things and left the house on February 12."

Initially, police investigated the case as a possible voluntary departure. However, the situation changed on February 22, five days later, when CCTV footage from the officetel was analyzed.

The footage showed Ms. A and Lee entering the building together around midnight on the 12th, but there was no footage of Ms. A leaving. Additionally, at approximately 1:25 a.m. on February 14, Lee was captured moving a large cardboard box on a cart to the underground parking garage.

During questioning as a witness, Lee stated: "The lease on my office ended, and when I brought office supplies home, Ms. A got angry and we fought. I then went out to eat with a friend and played billiards. When I returned, she had packed up and left."

But this explanation was a lie. After disappearing following the police interview, he was apprehended on March 14 at a jjimjilbang (Korean sauna) in Daegu and arrested on charges of murder and illegal disposal of a body.

Killed After Argument—Fabricated 'Trip to Hongdae' Via Text Message

On February 13, Lee argued with Ms. A about storing office items he had cleared out at their home. As the argument escalated with expletives exchanged, he became enraged and suffocated Ms. A by covering her mouth and nose.

Immediately after the crime, he went out to play billiards with a friend nearby before returning to the officetel. Then, at approximately 1:25 a.m. the next day, he placed Ms. A's body in a large box, loaded it onto a cart, and took the elevator down to transfer it to a rental car.

To conceal the crime, he used Ms. A's mobile phone to send a text message to her sister saying, "I'm heading to Hongdae now." The investigation revealed he later discarded the phone near Hongdae in Seoul to make it appear as a simple case of leaving home.

Ms. A's body was secretly buried in an empty lot in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, approximately 10 kilometers from the Anyang officetel.

Crime Reenacted at Scene—"I'm Sorry, I Was Wrong"

During the on-site investigation, suspect Lee appeared at Anyang Dongan Police Station with his face covered by a navy blue baseball cap and blue mask. When reporters asked if he had anything to say to his deceased girlfriend before being transported to the scene, he briefly replied, "I'm sorry. I was wrong," before boarding the transport vehicle.

The crime was reenacted at the scene in its entirety. Lee demonstrated how he argued with Ms. A inside the officetel, suffocated her by covering her mouth and nose, placed her body in a travel bag, transferred it to a large cardboard box, loaded it onto a cart, and moved it via elevator.

A police official said, "At first, he described the crime process matter-of-factly, but later he appeared to regret his actions with tears welling up in his eyes."

The burial site was in an area with little foot traffic due to nearby agricultural greenhouses, but it was close to a road with vehicle traffic. The investigation revealed that on the day of the crime, Lee obtained bags of tile cement powder from a construction site in Anyang, buried the body, and sprinkled the powder on top. Police explained, "It appears he was trying to harden the soil to hide traces of the crime."

Prosecution Seeks Death for "Premeditated Murder"—Court Sentences 18 Years

Prosecutors sought the death penalty for Lee, arguing the crime was "premeditated murder," citing how he methodically attempted to conceal his actions by burying the body and sending text messages using the victim's phone immediately after the killing.

The defense, however, requested leniency, noting that "the defendant served as a military academy officer and received a commendation from his commanding officer, has two young daughters from a previous marriage, and has a history of attempted suicide and psychiatric treatment."

The court did not accept the prosecution's argument of premeditated murder. On July 15 of that year, the court sentenced Lee to 18 years in prison.