Tourist haven hit by ‘serial killer’ panic after cop allegedly faked lacking individual information

A ‘serial killer’ panic has gripped a holiday island after a police officer allegedly faked missing persons files, leaving families in shock

Holidaymakers have been left terrified after authorities on a popular honeymoon island were forced to deny claims of a serial killer on the loose. Jeju Island, famed for its stunning volcanic landscapes and luxury beach resorts, has been dubbed “death island” following a string of mysterious deaths and botched missing persons investigations.

Concerns spread across South Korea after it emerged a police officer allegedly faked reports to shut down active cases to avoid doing extra work.

The 34-year-old cop, identified only by his surname Bu, is accused of falsely marking one missing individual as dead and claiming he had spoken to two others when he hadn’t. He then reportedly deleted files from the database to hide his tracks from colleagues.

While Bu is not suspected of involvement in any deaths, his alleged procedural shortcuts left families in the dark while bodies went undiscovered.

Bu is said to have reassured families that their missing loved ones were safe and sound but had requested their whereabouts remain a secret.

Tragically, two of the missing people were discovered dead last month. Among them were 37-year-old Jang Mi-Ran, who vanished on May 15.

Bu is claimed to have shut down her case just two hours after she was reported missing, telling her boyfriend that he had spoken to her.

Her body was eventually discovered in a palm tree grove 104 days later. Another victim, a 60-year-old man, was found dead 51 days after his family was allegedly falsely assured he was safe.

The blunders sparked a frenzy online, with wild theories claiming a serial killer or human trafficking ring is actively operating on the island.

Local authorities have scrambled to pour cold water on the claims, insisting there are no confirmed links between the cases. Wi Seong-gon, Jeju’s Governor, desperately tried to reassure anxious tourists.

He said: “The spread of fake news and rumours suggesting Jeju is more dangerous than other regions in the wake of this false case closure must urgently be corrected.

“Accurate facts and necessary information must be communicated quickly, and we must respond actively so that unverified information does not deepen anxiety about safety in Jeju.”

Police top brass are now painfully re-examining 310,000 missing persons cases closed over the last three years to ensure no other investigations were tampered with. UK policing experts have blasted the Korean authorities for a lack of oversight.

Shabnam Chaudhri, a former Metropolitan Police detective who led a missing persons unit, slammed the officer’s actions as “incompetence and laziness”, but warned he shouldn’t be made a scapegoat.

Speaking to the Sun, she pointed to “a serious lack of leadership and supervision from the South Korean police force”, asking: “Why were they unable to approach somebody and say they were overworked?”

Morgan Wright, founder of the National Centre for Opened and Unsolved Cases, added: “There is no way any single individual or any agency should be able to delete reports in a system of record. This is a failure on one of the largest levels I have ever seen.”

Jack Roberts, lead investigator at Global Investigations Ltd, condemned the cop’s actions as “horribly heinous and incompetent.”

He told the Sun: “I understand maybe one person who thought it was okay if they had a heavy workload, but you should never ever give false hope and information to families that are so desperate.”

The officer, who worked at Jeju West Police Station, has been charged with forging public electronic records, obstruction of official duties and dereliction of duty.

Meanwhile, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has ordered a complete overhaul of how missing person cases are handled across the nation. He said: “The workload may be a factor, but this is ultimately a matter of people’s lives.”