On the morning of the 24th, Christmas Eve, a family of four, including parents and a boy and girl, was found dead in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, prompting a police investigation.

Illustration by Chung Da-woon

According to the police and fire authorities, at around 10:15 a.m. that day, a report from a hiker was received regarding a vehicle parked at an empty lot in Hoeam-dong, Yangju, since the 21st.

Police and fire authorities dispatched to the scene discovered that four individuals, including a couple in their 40s, a son (11), and a daughter (5), were found dead inside the parked car.

It was reported that A was in the driver's seat, and the mother and two children were in the back seat.

In the vehicle, traces of flammable materials being burned, a sleeping pill container, and a suicide note containing the message of struggling with debts worth hundreds of millions of won were found.

The police have determined that they lived in Mapo-gu, Seoul, before moving to Yangju last month.

The police plan to investigate the time and cause of death through autopsies conducted by the National Forensic Service.

※ If you have concerns that are difficult to discuss, such as feelings of depression, or know family or friends experiencing such difficulties, you can receive 24-hour expert counseling through the suicide prevention hotline ☎109 or the suicide prevention SNS counseling service “Madeleine.”