Police in Cheonan are investigating whether a possible sexual motive was involved in the killing of a Japanese woman in her 20s, rather than accepting the suspect’s claim that he intended a joint suicide after losing money in stock investments. The suspect, who had met the woman only a few times, was arrested in Jeonju after leaving the scene, while investigators are examining his phone through digital forensics and awaiting the autopsy findings.
Police said they will use objective evidence to determine the motive and sequence of events, noting that the woman’s locked phone and her death limit direct confirmation of how the pair met.