All 7 Suspects in Suwon Teen Murder Case Found Not Guilty

In the 2007 Suwon teen murder case, the Supreme Court acquitted all seven suspects who had been wrongfully charged due to the investigators' misidentification of the victim, who had an intellectual disability, and the fabrication of evidence against them. The final not guilty verdicts came three years after the incident.

In February 2008, prosecutors indicted five runaway youths detained at a juvenile detention center as the new culprits. Although the youths initially confessed to the crime during the investigation, they retracted their statements in court, claiming they had made false confessions due to coercion and inducement by police and prosecutors. Video footage of the prosecutorial investigation captured a prosecutor repeatedly explaining the details of the case to lead the suspects' statements. While the trial court recognized the credibility of the confessions and handed down guilty verdicts, the Seoul High Court, during the appeal, acquitted all defendants, citing significant doubts regarding the confession process and a lack of objective evidence.

After the runaway youths were acquitted, retrials for the homeless men initially identified as the perpetrators followed. The Seoul High Court and the Supreme Court acquitted Mr. Jeong and Mr. Kang through retrials in 2012 and 2013, respectively.

The homeless men and runaway youths, who were found not guilty, won lawsuits against the state for criminal compensation and damages; Mr. Jeong received over 130 million won in criminal compensation. The real culprit was never identified, and the statute of limitations for the charge of infliction of bodily injury resulting in death expired in 2014, leaving the case unsolved.