Police have upgraded and reorganized their existing special investigation team into a special investigation unit to strengthen their probe into the "Jang Yun-gi case," in which a high school girl was murdered in Gwangju.
The National Office of Investigation under the Korean National Police Agency said on the 11th that it would elevate the special investigation team to a special investigation unit for a more swift and systematic probe, as the scope of the investigation into the Jang Yun-gi case has expanded and compulsory measures such as search and seizure have widened.
The special investigation unit will be staffed with a total of 41 people, up from the previous 27 with the addition of 14. The unit will be headed by Oh Dong-wook, chief of the investigation bureau at the Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency (senior superintendent general), while Hong Jang-deuk, the chief superintendent who previously led the special investigation team, will move to the position of deputy head.
The National Office of Investigation plans to accelerate the probe by deploying an additional 14 people, including personnel from the secondary-harm investigation team and the digital forensics center, in addition to existing staff from the police agency's serious crime investigation division.
To provide more systematic updates on the progress of the investigation, the office also separately designated a superintendent-level spokesperson.
Earlier that morning, police broadened the scope of the investigation by searching the offices of the investigation command, including the offices of the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency chief and the Gwangju Gwangsan Police Station chief.
"We will investigate thoroughly so that no doubts remain throughout the entire investigation process, in order to clearly establish the facts of the case," an official at the National Office of Investigation said.
