True crime is a popular entertainment genre. One South Korean fan’s appreciation turned deadly. On Friday November 24, 2023, Jung Yoo-jung, 23, was sentenced to life in prison for murdering a female tutor she met online.
Jung confessed to her crime. She stated she did it "out of curiosity." Her defense tried to argue she committed the crime while experiencing "mental and physical disorder" but the court rejected this claim.
Jung was first arrested in May. "Jung was found to have premeditated the crime driven by a desire to kill someone after she became obsessed with murder from TV programs and books," a police spokesperson from Busan, Korea, stated. It was a tip from a taxi driver that led to her arrest.
Jung catfished the tutor. She pretended to be a mom of a ninth grade student who needed a tutor. She was calculating in her search for a victim. She made sure to focus on women who lived alone and tutored at home.
More from LittleThings: Man Starts GoFundMe To Cover Husband's Funeral Expenses, Then He Gets Charged With Murder
Jung contacted over 50 possible victims before finding her ideal candidate. She spoke to the victim just two days before the murder would take place. Jung dressed up as a student to commit her crime.
Jung was let into the victim’s home. She then stabbed the tutor over 100 times. Next, she went to a local grocery store to buy bleach and trash bags. She dismembered the body, placed the parts in a suitcase, and took a taxi to a river to dump it. This was the driver who turned her in.
During the investigation, police found more remains of the victim at Jung’s residence. Authorities also discovered her research in her browser history on how to dispose of a body. According to the BBC, Jung was tested and the results showed psychopathic tendencies.
The court did not buy Jung’s attempt at a mental disorder defense. "The crime was carefully planned and carried out and the defendant's statements have frequently changed. Thus it is difficult to accept her claim of mental and physical disorder," it ruled.
Jung received a life sentence and will also wear an electronic monitoring device for 30 years. The prosecution asked for the death penalty.
