Man arrested for murdering taxi driver, hiding body in his closet

A man in his 30s was arrested Sunday for murdering and hiding the body of a taxi driver in his 60s in a closet at his home in Paju, Gyeonggi.

Ilsan Donbu Police Precinct in Ilsan, Gyeonggi [YONHAP]

A man in his 30s was arrested Sunday for murdering and hiding the body of a taxi driver in his 60s in a closet at his home in Paju, Gyeonggi.

"There is a dead body in my boyfriend's closet at an apartment in Paju," a caller reported to the 112 emergency hotline around 11:22 a.m. on Sunday.

Earlier that day, the taxi driver's son called the police at around 3:30 a.m. saying that his father "has been missing for six days" and that he "talked to him on KakaoTalk but it feels like talking to a different person."

The police went to the apartment in Paju after the call was made and confirmed that the dead body was the taxi driver.

According to the Ilsan Dongbu Police Precinct, the man was involved in a car crash with the taxi driver while drunk driving at around 11 p.m. on Dec. 20.

He told the taxi driver that he would compensate him if he does not call the police and that he would pay him at his own home as he did not have the money with him.

According to the suspect, he began a quarrel with the taxi driver at his home, killed him and hid him in a closet.

The suspect was found Sunday at Inje University Ilsan Paik Hospital in Ilsan, Gyeonggi, while getting treatment for his injured hand.

"We cannot completely rely on the suspect's statement, so we will look into whether there were any additional crimes or cover-ups," a spokesperson from the police said. "We will apply for an arrest warrant today."

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]