‘Kokkomu 2’ The Itaewon murder case solved after 20 years… Victim's 母 "The prosecutor is as bad as the criminal"

Why did the victim's mother say the prosecutor was as bad as the criminal?

On the 17th, SBS 'The Tale of Biting the Tail' Season 2' (hereinafter 'Kokkomu 2') returned to the day of the Itaewon murder with the subtitle 'The Murderer, the Witness, and the Liar: The Itaewon Murder Case'.

On this day's broadcast, Joo Woo-jae, Beenzino, and Oh My Girl's Hyo-jeong appeared as story friends and listened to the stories of the storytellers.

Jean Trio described today's story as "a story more like a lie than a lie related to the lie of a liar that took 20 years to find." The story began on April 3, 1997 in Itaewon, Seoul.

Jo Jung-pil, a 22-year-old college student who was on a date with his girlfriend, headed to Itaewon to pick up his girlfriend. And he was in a hurry to go to the bathroom, so he went with his girlfriend to a hamburger shop on the main road, and while he was going to the bathroom, the girlfriend ordered a hamburger and waited for Mr. Jungpil.

However, after 5 or 10 minutes, Jungpil didn't come back, and at that time, a man from the bathroom got tired and covered his mouth and came out. Feeling something strange, the girlfriend headed to the bathroom and was astonished to see Mr. Jungpil, who had collapsed in the inner corner of the bathroom, which had become a sea of ​​blood.

Jungpil's neck was full of stab wounds, and he tried to stop the bleeding, but he had already stopped breathing. This case is known as the 'Itaewon Murder Case'. Jungpil, who has never missed 1st or 2nd place in the entire school and never rotted inside, is the youngest among 1 son and 3 daughters, and the third-generation reader, she grew up receiving a lot of love in her family, but she suffered such an absurd death.

And the next day, I got a call from the US military unit to report that they had seen Peterson stabbing a man. Patterson was immediately arrested, and the case seemed to be resolved smoothly. However, Patterson admitted that the crime was committed by his friend Eddie, not himself.

He said he went downstairs to the hamburger shop downstairs because he was hungry after drinking with friends at a club in Itaewon on the day of the incident. And then, a Korean man went into the bathroom, and Eddie said, "Let's go to the bathroom because we'll show you something cool."

Investigators rushed to Eddie's house to arrest him. However, he was meeting with a lawyer at the time and was questioned after his voluntary appearance. And Eddie's statement was the exact opposite of Patterson's.

He said that Patterson had something to show him and asked him to go to the bathroom, and as he was going to wash his hands, he followed him. While he was washing his hands, Patterson kept stabbing Mr. Jungpil, and Eddie said the scene was unbelievable and felt like he was watching a movie.

Due to the conflicting statements of the two, the US criminal investigation team summoned friends who were with them that night to investigate. And friends told shocking stories. The hamburger we ordered came out, and then Patterson pulled a jackknife out of his pocket. This was the knife used in the crime. And at this time, Eddie encouraged Patterson to say, "Hey, have you stabbed a Patterson? Go out and stab someone." At that moment, Jungpil went into the bathroom, and two people followed.

And the behavior of the two men coming out of the bathroom was quite different. Eddie came up to the club, but his white shirt was covered in blood, as if he had been sprayed with it. And he said, "We stabbed a friend in the neck with a knife," and the friends were surprised and went to the bathroom to find that Mr. Jungpil was lying there. When friends asked, "Did you kill someone?" Eddie said, "It's not me. Patterson did it just for fun."

In contrast, Patterson left the bathroom and went to the club's bathroom without returning to the club. Patterson, whose head, shirt, pants and hands were bloody, hurriedly drained the blood in the bathroom, changed into a friend's clothes, borrowed a hat, and hurriedly left the club. Then he returned to the US military base, burned a blood-stained shirt, and even destroyed evidence by throwing the knife used in the crime into the sewer.

Also, friends revealed that Patterson was a member of a gang called 'Norte 14', and the gang's attack method was similar to the murder of Mr. The US investigator was convinced that the culprit was Patterson, and handed over the findings to the South Korean prosecutors.

But the case took a turn. Prosecutor Park, a veteran who had handled more than 100 murders alone, couldn't believe the investigation by the US investigator, so he re-investigated the case from the beginning and was convinced that the killer was Eddie.

He had three reasons to think that Eddie was the culprit. One of them is the memory of a murderer. He paid attention to the difference between Eddie, who was so surprised at the time, that he couldn't remember the specifics, and Patterson, who remembered everything in detail, including the attack site, the crime method, and the number of attacks. And he said, "When you stab a person with a knife and see blood, it is a common common sense in criminal psychology that you lose your temper and cannot remember what happened after that." He said, "It is common sense in criminal psychology that Eddie, who has no specific memory, is a murderer."

However, criminal psychology experts were puzzled by Prosecutor Park's opinion. Professor Lee Su-jeong said, "Normal victims' memories are inaccurate, and eyewitness memories are also inaccurate in some cases. However, the prosecutor's argument is that the criminal's memory is inaccurate. As far as I can remember, there is no such research or common sense." And he added, "I am making such statements because I have sensory information that I feel in my fingers. Eyewitnesses do not make such statements."

Prosecutor Park paid attention to the opinion of the forensic scientist who was in charge of the autopsy, saying, "The perpetrator is likely to be taller than the victim. Also, since there are no signs of defense, the perpetrator seems to be strong enough to subdue the victim." Prosecutor Park thought that the culprit was not Paterson, who was 172 cm tall and 63 kg in weight, but Eddie, who was 180 cm tall and weighed 105 kg. The forensic scientist said, "I was talking about the possibility," but Prosecutor Park's thoughts were already tilted.

And finally, the reason that Prosecutor Park had no choice but to be sure was the lie detector. He asked Patterson and Eddie the same question, "Are you the one who stabbed Cho Jung-pil?", and both denied the crime and pointed out the other as the culprit. But the polygraph's results were different. Agitated Eddie and stable Patterson, the detector revealed that Eddie lied and Patterson told the truth.

If you are nervous, you may get a false reaction even though it is true, and in the case of a sociopath, the result of a lie detector that could not be detected was not accepted as evidence in court. However, Prosecutor Park believed this result 100% and concluded that Eddie was the murderer. Prosecutors charged Eddie with murder and Patterson with possession of a weapon and destruction of evidence.

Even in court, the two statements continued to contradict each other. Two people claiming to be the culprits. However, as a result of the first trial, Eddie was sentenced to life in prison and Patterson was sentenced to one year and six months in prison for destroying evidence. However, much has been said about this verdict. Patterson and Eddie are 17-year-olds, the maximum sentence of 20 years in court, but the judge sentenced them to life in prison. However, it was revealed that this was an error caused by ignorance of the law and not for any other reason.

This was corrected in the second trial. Eddie was sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder, and Patterson was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison. However, this decision was again overturned by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court held a trial again, saying that there was insufficient evidence that Eddie was a murderer, and Eddie was acquitted at the trial again.

If Eddie isn't the culprit, the culprit is Patterson. However, Patterson, who had to be held captive, had already been released after serving his sentence. Patterson, who received a suspended sentence, was released before Eddie's trial was over.

Suspension of execution is possible only when life in prison is impossible, and the reason for permission is determined. But Patterson was nowhere to be found. In response, the National Assembly asked the Minister of Justice why the sentence was suspended for him. However, he could not give an accurate answer, saying, "I think it was based on the behavioral record."

In this situation, the injustice of the victims' families only worsened. Jungpil's mother said, "I trusted the court. Still, the criminals will be identified. I thought the judge would relieve the injustice, but I thought that this is neither the country nor the law." Shall I let you go? Just think about it."

And Jungpil's mother files a complaint asking "Patterson be punished." But he had already left Korea. Patterson, who had been suspended from departure, took a flight confidently at the airport and departed in August 1999. How the hell did this happen?

In fact, the suspension of departure had a fixed deadline, so it was necessary to apply for an extension every three months. However, the changed prosecutor did not apply for an extension. The reason was because I forgot. However, he received only a warning and no proper discipline.

The prosecutor hastily applied for an extension after a few days had passed. But it was after Patterson left. The prosecutor was unaware of Patterson's departure from the country. In particular, he was shocked when it was announced that he only found out about it three months after leaving the country.

And this fact was covered up by the prosecution. It was even revealed that he had lied to the media coverage. In response, the prosecutor in charge said, "I'm sorry that I lied back then. My position was a bit like that because I had left the country publicly."

In order to relieve the sorrow of their son who died unfairly, the victims' families repeatedly asked for help from the country and the law. But the answer I always get back is, "It's not easy. There is no way unless the US helps." The family then filed a lawsuit directly in the US courts. What the state and prosecutors should do, the victims' families had no choice but to do.

However, the hearts of these desperate families did not work. A U.S. court rejected the family's request. The repatriation of criminals is a national matter, and individuals cannot intervene. Accordingly, Jungpil's mother began to go to sign petitions.

A mother who had to tell the story of her son's pain from the beginning to get a signature. At some point, the mother did not even cry and was rather angry and could not bear it. And my mother held on to the end with one mind, "It's like an obligation to bring people killed by Joong-pil."

Jungpil's mother, who collected the signatures and submitted it to the prosecution. However, the prosecution asked us to believe, "We are investigating. We are investigating the whereabouts of Patterson. We cannot find out where Patterson is." However, it was later revealed that it was in 2005 that the South Korean prosecutors made an official request to ascertain Patterson's whereabouts. This was six years after Patterson fled.

I haven't done anything in 6 years. To this, the Ministry of Justice said, "The legal cooperation is that a policeman goes there and arrests him. I do not know where it is, but if it is in Washington state, should the police there search the state of Washington state?"

After the official request in 2005, it took only 3 years and 4 months to get a response from the US. And the American response is "Patterson's whereabouts are unknown". So, after Mr. Jungpil died, 12 years passed in vain.

The death of Mr. Jung-pil, who is fading from everyone's memory. However, in September 2009, the movie 'Itaewon Murder Case' based on a real case was released and this case was re-examined. In response, the 'I want to know' team went to the United States to find Patterson. And the Nara found Patterson, which the prosecution had not been able to do for over a decade, within a week of coverage.

The 'Gal' team met Patterson in person in 2009. At the time, Patterson was displeased with being treated as a fugitive in Korea. He said, "I came back legally. I have real estate in my name and my name is on the vehicle register. I told you to contact me whenever you need testimony, but the prosecutor did not contact me," he said. shocked me

The impact of the broadcast was huge. After the broadcast, the law enforcement authorities urged self-restraint and requested a re-investigation, and the judicial authorities formally requested extradition to the United States in December 2009. Then, a year and a half later, news broke that Patterson had been arrested in the United States.

After one year and five months, the trial result came out. The U.S. court ruled that "Patterson will be extradited to Korea." This started Patterson's persistence. He said, "The decision to repatriate is wrong. Please review it again."He refused to be extradited by all means of legal means, and even filed a petition for personal protection. In addition, Patterson persisted by citing the sofa agreement and the principle of inaction.

Another three years passed, and finally Patterson's extradition to Korea was decided. 18 years after the Itaewon incident, Patterson has set foot on Korean soil again. Patterson, who was repatriated with a proud face, still did not admit to the murder charge, and said, "It is not right for me to be here."

It was not easy to prove his murder charges based on an incident that took place 18 years ago, some scene photos and past statements. A new prosecutor's team was formed, and they installed the toilet set and started analyzing it. The evidence was the same as in the past, but unlike the past, forensic techniques were introduced.

And bloodstain analysis was performed with this forensic technique, which was a decisive step in overturning Patterson's statement. As a result of analysis of bloodstains in the scene photos, Patterson could not stand in the position claimed by Patterson, and when looking at the amount and angle of blood, more blood was shed on the murderer than on the victim, so Patterson was covered with blood. Prosecutors were convinced that Patterson was the culprit.

re-opened trial. Finally, the judge gave Jung-pil's mother the right to speak. The mother said, "20 years ago, because the investigation was wrong, all the killers came out and the family lost everything. They sold their house and paid for the lawyer's fees, the eldest daughter's jeonse money, the daughters' severance pay, and the whole family lived like this for 21 years. The law can't be cruel to someone who is so unfair. The criminals are bad, but the prosecutor was as wrong to us as the criminals." What caused suffering to the victims' families was that there was no difference between the criminal and the prosecutor.

20 years after the incident, the Supreme Court's final decision was made. The Supreme Court said, "It has been proven beyond any doubt that Patterson murdered the victim. He sentences Patterson to 20 years in prison."

A mother who has returned 20 years to catch the killer in front of her eyes. After receiving the Supreme Court's judgment, he said, "However, 20 years later, the true culprit has been revealed, so I am relieved. My son died, but there are no murderers every day, so I wanted to reveal the true culprit, but I am grateful that it was revealed like this. "If you are born in your next life, I hope you will be born into a wealthy family with a lot of money and live doing the things you want to do a lot."

Years after Patterson was sentenced by the Supreme Court, her mother is still worried that he will be released again. Jungpil's mother, who turned 79 this year, said, "I have passed six presidents. Does it make sense to the world? I didn't even think that I would be subjected to something like this. I thought I just had to live a good life. Ordinary citizens like us are not even citizens of the country. I heard this," making the viewers immersed in many thoughts.

In today's story, Hyojeong said, "There must be more people who suffer from this other than Jungpil. I wish I would have listened to the voices of such people more, and I would like them to pay more attention to the small voices."

And Joo Woo-jae said, "Isn't the pain I've suffered because of wrong enforcement of the law greater than the pain I suffered from the murder of my son?" "Justice can only be realized when the law is properly enforced."He emphasized that the basics must be kept in order to ensure proper justice.

Jang Hang-joon drew attention by saying, "I cry out that justice is alive, but that makes me sad. In fact, it's because justice is dead."

And Beenzino said, "I hope you don't use power passively. I think it's important to take responsibility for what I do and know exactly what I need to do at that moment." Jang Hang-jun added, "There is a saying that a nation is like a mother. I hope that mothers will love us as much as we love mothers."

Lastly, Jungpil's mother expressed her wish, saying, "When people are suffering from unfortunate things, it is the law that I should set them free. I hope that the country will take care of them as if they were my own children." 

(SBS Entertainment News Editor Kim Hyo-jeong)