South Korean Killed & Dismembered Stranger After Watching Shows About Murders

With all the gory thrillers and true-crime series flooding our screens these days, it’s no secret that many of us are hooked on this particular genre, binge-watching on Netflix like there’s no tomorrow.

From the American TV series You to the South Korean hit Squid Game, as well as many other murder-themed series, it’s crucial to remember that these shows primarily exist for entertainment purposes. 

Most of them are fictional narratives carefully crafted by professional screenwriters.

Nevertheless, in any given scenario, there will always be exceptions.

A troubling case emerged when a 23-year-old South Korean woman killed and dismembered a stranger.

Posed as a High School Parent to Fool a Freelance Tutor

On Friday (24 November), the South Korean court handed down a life sentence to 23-year-old Jung Yoo-jung. 

This verdict was the result of her deliberate act of taking the life of an unknown individual. She claimed it was motivated by “curiosity”.

Furthermore, the Busan District Court ruled that Jung Yoo-jung must wear a location-tracking device for the next 30 years, as reported by local media outlets.

The victim in this distressing case was a freelance tutor.

Jung posed as a mother looking for an English tutor on a mobile app that connects parents with teachers. She was matched with the victim.

On 26 May, she scheduled a tutoring session at the victim’s home in Busan for her “daughter”. Jung wore a school uniform she had bought online to deceive the victim. 

Once inside, she stabbed the victim more than 110 times.

She bought trash bags and bleach. 

There, she proceeded to dismember the victim’s body, packing some of the body parts into a suitcase. 

As reported by the police, she hailed a taxi and transported the suitcase to the Nakdong River, where she callously disposed of the remains.

Judge Kim Tae-eob, overseeing the case, expressed the necessity for a “severe penalty” for Jung.

The court underscored that Jung committed the crime without prior acquaintance with the victim, driven by her twisted motives.

Prosecutors, as mentioned in the Korea JoongAng Daily report, revealed that Jung inflicted multiple stab wounds on the victim, targeting both non-fatal areas, such as her palm, and the fatal injuries that ultimately led to her death.

Taxi Driver Alerted Police After Encounter with Jung

The case was brought to attention when a taxi driver noticed the suspicious behaviour after encountering Jung.

A taxi driver driving Jung to Yangsan became suspicious when he noticed her discarding a bloodstained suitcase in the woods. 

Concerned by this unusual behaviour, he promptly alerted the police.

In June, Jung admitted to committing the gruesome crime, revealing that her curiosity had been fueled by her consumption of murder television shows.

“Abnormal” Childhood Shaped by Absence, Jung Grew Up Without Parents

The Korea Herald reported that prosecutors in Busan had uncovered significant details about Jung’s behaviour leading up to the murder. 

They revealed that she had made remarks resembling death threats during a phone call with her father before the tragic incident. 

Additionally, officials mentioned that Jung had conducted online searches related to the act of killing close relatives.

The report also shed light on Jung’s troubled family history, indicating that her father had abandoned her when she was merely six years old. At the same time, her mother had left the family when she was just one year old. 

She was raised by her grandfather.

The court’s analysis of Jung’s motive revealed a complex mix of emotions, including resentment and anger toward her family, a sense of helplessness stemming from ongoing struggles with academic and employment pursuits, and an admiration for the lives of others.

According to The Korea Herald, the court acknowledged that Jung’s upbringing and background may have played a role in the development of her abnormal personality.

Psychopathy Test Revealed Her Score Exceeded the Average Person in South Korea

The police administered the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised, a test designed to assess psychopathic traits, to Jung. 

Typically, the average person in South Korea scores around 15 out of 40 on this test.

According to a report by The Korea Herald, Jung’s score surpassed the average, although the exact score was not disclosed. 

The report did, however, clarify that a person is classified as a psychopath if their score exceeds 25 out of 40 on the test.