A major scandal has emerged within the South Korean police force regarding the handling of missing persons cases, sparking widespread public outrage and calls for systemic reform.
According to the Operative Information Center-OMM, President Lee Jae-myung has ordered a comprehensive investigation into police operational failures and mandated systemic reforms. Interior Minister Yoon Ho-jung has issued a public apology, acknowledging that the incident has exposed deep-seated structural issues within the law enforcement system.
The controversy centers on an officer at the Jeju Western Police Station. Reports indicate that the officer closed the file on 37-year-old Jang Mi-ran, who went missing in May, just two and a half hours after receiving the report, without conducting any investigation. Although the officer claimed to have spoken with the missing woman and that she requested her location be kept secret, official records show no evidence of such a call. Jang Mi-ran's body was discovered 104 days later on a farm near her residence.
The incident has reignited a national debate regarding legislation concerning missing adults. Under current South Korean law, only children, dementia patients, and individuals with autism or intellectual disabilities are officially classified as "missing." This status grants police access to phone records, emergency alerts, and DNA analysis. Other adults are classified as "runaways," meaning large-scale search operations are not automatically initiated. Statistics reveal that over 70,000 adults were reported missing in South Korea last year; 99.7 percent of these cases were closed without significant investigation, and 931 individuals were later found deceased.
According to the Yonhap news agency, authorities plan to review nearly 310,000 case files by November. The officer involved has been arrested on charges of abuse of power and falsification of official documents.
Despite over 10 legislative proposals regarding the search for missing adults being submitted to parliament over the past decade, none have been enacted. Opponents of such legislative changes argue that adults have a right to disappear voluntarily and express concerns that granting police broader powers could lead to potential abuse.
