The show 'Brave Detectives' continues to delve into the harrowing world of crime investigation. Previously hosted by Lee Yi-kyung, the program has been running with guest hosts since his temporary departure last December due to personal controversies. As of now, three months later, there is no news of his return.

On the 73rd episode of T-Cast E Channel's 'Brave Detectives 4' (directed by Lee Ji-sun), aired on the 27th of last month, Inspector Kim Jin-sung from Ilsan Dongbu Police Station, former KCSI Commissioner Yoon Wae-chul, and Inspector Kim Jin-soo shared their investigation logs. Actor Lee Sang-yeob appeared as a guest, revealing that he was invited after a chance meeting with the show's producer last spring. He remarked on the intense and lively gaze of the detectives he met.

The first case presented began with an urgent report of a massive fire. A furniture factory warehouse was engulfed in flames, destroying the second-floor warehouse and vehicles, and leaving a man in his late 50s severely mutilated. Nearby CCTV captured a helmeted figure entering the building and leaving on a motorcycle just before smoke emerged. The victim's wife shockingly identified her son as the only person capable of such an act.

The perpetrator was indeed the son, identified as Choi (alias). Prior to the incident, the father had reported his son multiple times for various threats, including smearing filth on the door, applying superglue, cutting brake hoses, and damaging tires. The parents, under duress, sold part of their assets to give him 80 million won and moved away. Choi had returned from studying in Vietnam five years earlier, claiming health issues from supplements sent by his father, and demanded 1.5 million won for medication. His irrational demands escalated to 1 billion won for treatment, and he disowned his parents.

Choi was arrested four hours after the fire but remained silent about the crime, blaming his father for childhood abuse and strange medications. Evidence showed he burned his clothes near his grandfather's columbarium after the arson. Forensic analysis found blood on his shoes, and his phone contained searches on cutting brake hoses, checking parental assets, inheritance methods, and parricide sentencing precedents. He had also used the money from his parents for cosmetic surgeries.

Profiler Kwon Il-yong suggested that delusions distorted Choi's judgment, leading to the crime, though he wasn't entirely mentally unstable given the crime's preparation. After initially denying the charges, Choi confessed to strangling his father three times and committing arson after hiring a private lawyer. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. Ahn Jung-hwan expressed his sorrow over the tragic case.

The second case involved a large-scale missing persons investigation with 8,500 personnel, initially yielding no clues. Two women in their 40s, living together, went missing after leaving in a car, prompting a report from one woman's sister. Their phones briefly pinged near their home and a remote mountain area, with calls lasting only two seconds. The next day, messages were sent to acquaintances claiming they were hiding due to strange noises and misunderstandings, likely to mislead the investigation.

The women, who became friends while working at a restaurant, were involved in private lending, with debts ranging from 5 million to 50 million won. On the day they disappeared, a debtor visited to pay interest, but no suspects emerged. Despite extensive searches, neither bodies nor the car were found, leading the investigation to scrap yards and used car dealerships. A breakthrough came from a used car parts seller who had exported an engine matching the missing vehicle. A 30-year-old man who called a tow truck claimed it was at the request of an 'older brother,' revealed to be a 47-year-old man with 17 prior convictions and the debtor's husband.

The perpetrator claimed the crime was impulsive during an argument over interest. However, he had hidden a hunting rifle in a fishing bag, transported the victims to a secluded area, and shot them multiple times. He buried the bodies near his parents' grave. The messages were sent by a student paid to do so. The accomplice who called the tow truck was instructed to dispose of bloody clothes and the rifle. The perpetrator received a life sentence, while four others involved in the car's disposal received suspended sentences.

Lee So-jung, TenAsia Reporter forusojung@tenasia.co.kr
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