In May 2023, 23-year-old Jung Yoo-jung of South Korea’s obsession with true crime went too far when she brutally murdered and dismembered her 26-year-old English tutor. Jung’s stated motive for the crime reveals the dark side of true crime‘s popularity and reflects a growing interest in the subject matter among South Korean women Jung’s age.
According to the BBC, Jung contacted her victim on a tutoring app and said she was the mother of a high school student in need of English lessons. Jung arrived at the victim’s home — whose identity has not been revealed in the press — wearing a Korean school uniform, and once inside, she stabbed the victim more than 100 times until she died. Jung then dismembered her body and discarded the remains at a park in Busan, South Korea.
Several pieces of evidence connected Jung to the crime, including reports from a taxi driver that a passenger — who was Jung — seemed to discard a blood-soaked suitcase and CCTV footage that showed Jung entering and exiting the victim’s home. Once in custody, Jung confessed to the crime, as further evidence mounted that Jung had an unhealthy preoccupation with true crime media.
Jung was “curious”
According to Jung Yoo-jung, she sought out potential victims to commit murder “out of curiosity.” Jung was reportedly preoccupied with true crime media, and subsequent mental health evaluations showed Jung lived with mental health challenges. According to Korea JungAng Daily, true crime popularity has grown among women of Jung’s generation. Real-life crime content can have negative psychological and emotional consequences, many experts agree. Speaking with the New York Post, however, true crime media researcher Coltan Scrivner of the Recreational Fear Lab at Aarhus University said true crime fans rarely go on to commit crimes of their own.
In Nov. 2023, Jung received a life sentence for a murder she reportedly committed out of “curiosity.” The court ruled the killing was premeditated, as internet search history showed Jung researching how to kill someone and get rid of a body. Jung also reportedly contacted several other women on the tutoring app before selecting her victim, inquiring with each whether they gave lessons from home. Meanwhile, the court called Jung’s letters of apology written to the victim’s family “deliberate and contrived,” as per The Korea Herald, but rejected the prosecution’s request for the death penalty. Jung will be eligible for parole in 20 years under Korean law.
Published: Nov 28, 2023 02:16 pm