Police end serial murder probe

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will hand over today the remainder of the cases it believes it has proven against an alleged serial killer, Yoo Yeong-cheol. The Seoul District Public Prosecutors’ Office will receive documents and evidence in 12 cases.
Police have found the bodies of 11 murder victims on the mountain behind Bongwon Temple, central Seoul, with the help of Mr. Yoo’s testimony.
Five cases, including the murder of an aged academic couple, were handed over earlier to the prosecution. Police say they believe Mr. Yoo was responsible for 21 killings in all.
The police have been criticized for relying heavily on the suspect’s blurry statements while coming up with a paucity of physical evidence on their own.
A police search team has tried unsuccessfully to find the corpse of a 20-year-old woman that Mr. Yoo said he had also buried behind Bongwon Temple. Neither could police link him to a recent spate of homicides in southwest Seoul, although he admitted to the killings.