PM calls for overhaul of 'organizational culture' of police amid outrage over missing person cases

Seoul, August 27 - Prime Minister Han Seong-sook has urged measures to reform the way police handle missing person cases and to overhaul the agency's organizational culture following public outrage over the premature closure of at least two cases due to false reports. Two individuals, a woman in her 30s and a man in his 60s, were both found dead over the past week on the southern island of Jeju, months after they were reported missing.

Both cases were closed in error, and the officer responsible has been arrested for the false closures. This revelation has raised concerns about the seriousness with which missing person cases are investigated and the potential for similar oversights. Police have begun investigating all missing person cases across the country since the revelations.

Earlier this week, President Lee Jae Myung also called for the creation of an organization dedicated to reforming the police as the agency prepares to assume greater responsibilities following a reform measure that strips prosecutors of their investigative powers. The prime minister has spoken with the acting national police chief and other senior police officials, urging them to develop measures to overhaul the missing person investigation system and, more fundamentally, the police's organizational culture.

She emphasized that there are significant issues with the procedures, sequences, and approaches used in handling such cases, stating that the false closure of these missing person cases is "very shocking" and "hard to accept." Han acknowledged that establishing a reforming organization within the police might prove challenging and suggested that the new body may need to be set up outside the agency.