A police officer booked on suspicion of falsely closing a missing-person report for Jang Mi-ran, 37, was found to have deleted information related to Jang from an internal system.
The Jeju Provincial Police Agency said on the 21st, "It was found that Sergeant A, the officer in charge of the first missing-person report, not only closed out the 112 emergency call but also had materials in the missing-person profiling system deleted from the management list."
The missing-person profiling system is an internal police system that manages reports and discovery information on missing people and supports searches and investigations. It allows checks of past report and discovery histories, reasons for release, and actions taken.
According to police, the initial missing-person report was filed at about 6:43 p.m. on May 15 by Jang's partner, B. Officers from the local precinct met the caller in person and, based on the location of Jang's cellphone, canvassed and searched lodging facilities around Hallim Port in Jeju City.
However, at about 9:16 p.m. the same day, A, who was in charge of the case, was found to have closed the 112 call even though Jang's whereabouts had not been confirmed. A was found to have falsely told Jang's family that "we got in touch with Jang," "Jang is fine," and "Jang does not want to disclose the location." As a result, officers at the scene judged the case to be concluded and halted the search.
A has been booked on charges of dereliction of duty and violating the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. Through the anti-corruption and economic crime investigation unit, police are investigating how the initial report came to be closed and the process of deleting the system materials.
Jang's whereabouts have not been confirmed for three months since May. In mid-last month, police received another missing-person report from Jang's family and launched an intensive search. Since the initial report, there have been no signs of life such as phone use or financial transactions, according to reports.