Sejong manhunt ends in arrest of suspect in fatal stabbing of woman

A man in his 40s who fatally stabbed a woman he had been stalking in Daegu was arrested in Sejong on Saturday, four days after fleeing the scene.

The suspect who murdered a woman he had been stalking in Daegu is escorted to Seongseo Police Precinct in Daegu on June 15. [NEWS1]

A man in his 40s who fatally stabbed a woman he had been stalking in Daegu was arrested in Sejong on Saturday, four days after fleeing the scene.

The man was arrested at 10:45 p.m. in front of a warehouse owned by an acquaintance in Sejong, according to Seongseo Police Precinct in Daegu on Sunday. Police said he did not resist arrest.

He was transferred to the Seongseo Police Precinct at 2:15 a.m. on Sunday.

The man, who entered the police station wearing a blue baseball cap, white mask and black tracksuit, appeared disheveled and unshaven after days on the run. He did not respond to questions from reporters about his motive for the killing.

Police allege the man broke into an apartment in Dalseo District, Daegu, at 3:30 a.m. on June 10 and stabbed a woman in her 50s to death.

He reportedly fled in his car and hid in a forested area in Sejong, near the site of his family’s grave.

The man is believed to have used a motorcycle without a license plate to move around the Sejong area during his escape.

A joint investigation team involving the Daegu, Sejong and North Chungcheong police agencies deployed hundreds of officers, detection dogs and drones in pursuit.

The city of Sejong also urged residents to refrain from entering the mountains and avoid secluded areas.

The suspect who murdered a woman he had been stalking in Daegu is escorted to Seongseo Police Precinct in Daegu on June 15. [NEWS1]

Police found that the man had previously threatened the woman with a weapon about a month earlier.

Officers were dispatched during an altercation between them, and the man was arrested on charges of intimidation under the anti-stalking law.

Prosecutors determined the case warranted detention and sought an arrest warrant, but the court rejected the request, saying he was cooperating with the investigation.

Police then took preventive measures by issuing the woman a smart watch and installing an intelligent CCTV system near her home.

The intelligent CCTV system is designed to recognize perpetrators when they loiter near a residence or enter restricted zones, sending emergency alerts to the victim in real time and notifying the 911 emergency control center, which can dispatch patrol officers immediately.

But police suspect the man was able to enter the woman’s apartment undetected by scaling a gas pipe to the sixth floor while wearing a mask, thereby avoiding the CCTV’s recognition system.

The woman had also recently returned the smart watch to the police.

A family member found her in a state of cardiac arrest with stab wounds, and she died about an hour after being taken to the hospital.

“We will transport him to Daegu for further investigation into his motive before requesting an arrest warrant on murder charges,” a police official said.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff. BY KIM JUNG-SEOK,BAEK KYUNG-SEO [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]