Seoul Police Admit Autopsy Report Was Insufficiently Reviewed in Closing Investigation Into Girl's Death 7 Years Ago
Police have been found to have closed the preliminary investigation into the death of a 44-month-old girl in Seongbuk District, Seoul, seven years ago without sufficiently reviewing the autopsy report, which determines the cause of death through examination of the body. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency judged that the investigation was inadequate, including the failure to secure statements from relevant parties, and follow-up measures will be decided based on whether the case is referred to the subcommittee of the investigative review committee dedicated to women and youth cases.
The girl's father, Mr. B, filed a request for investigative review on September 7, seeking an examination of the appropriateness of the decision to close the case after police had conducted only two preliminary investigations without launching a formal probe. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency questioned Mr. B in an interview format on the 23rd of last month.
Seongbuk Police Station closed the case without charges at the preliminary stage shortly after the incident, saying there were no suspicions of crimes such as abuse. It launched a pre-indictment investigation again in January this year but reached the same conclusion in April, judging there was no evidence to prove child abuse allegations against the girl's stepmother and others. Police did not separately investigate how capsaicin was detected in the girl's blood, and concluded that the bruises and wounds across her body could be attributed to self-harm.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency determined that during the Seongbuk station's investigation, a housekeeper who worked with the girl and officials from her daycare center were not questioned, and no witness statements supporting the theory that the wounds were self-inflicted were obtained. The autopsy report in question contained the opinion that, given the detection of capsaicin and other findings, it was difficult to conclude that the girl inflicted the injuries herself, meaning the possibility of abuse by another person had not been entirely ruled out. The agency is seeking an expert consultation by sending the report to a specialized institution.
Once the review investigation is complete, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will decide whether to refer the case to the subcommittee of the investigative review committee for women and youth cases, currently operating on a pilot basis. The subcommittee, composed of experts in crimes against women, youth, and children, will re-examine the case and determine whether to refer it to the full investigative review committee. The full committee will decide on follow-up measures such as supplementary or reinvestigation, or transfer or reassignment to another department or police station.
