Lawyer arrested on suspicion of strangling wife to death

The Korean American lawyer, who is suspected of murdering his wife, being taken to court in Seoul on Wednesday. The lawyer was immediately taken into police custody on Monday. [YONHAP]

A Korean American lawyer who was arrested on Monday for killing his wife at the couple's apartment in Jongno District, central Seoul, may have killed her by strangulation, the police said.

The Jongno police said Tuesday the National Forensic Service's initial autopsy report showed that the woman may have died from asphyxiation.

The husband, in his 50s, was arrested on Monday on suspicion of killing his wife with a blunt object.

The husband called first responders at 7:50 p.m. on Monday, saying that his wife had injured her head. However, first responders found that the husband was out with his daughter.

The wife died after being taken to hospital.

The police arrested the husband after he returned home an hour later.

The couple reportedly had arguments frequently.

The husband worked for a major law firm and is reported to be the son of a prosecutor-turned-politician.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]