Couple detained for allegedly forcing woman into fatal fights with teens

A couple accused of forcing a woman in her 20s to fight two teenage girls in Cheongju, North Chungcheong, which resulted in the woman’s death, have been detained by police.

The two suspects were detained on charges of jointly coercing the victim into the fights, the Cheongju Sangdang Police Station said on Tuesday. The two teenage girls who allegedly assaulted the victim were booked without detention on charges of assault resulting in death.

The couple allegedly forced the victim to fight the two teenagers one after another at a park in the Yongam-dong neighborhood of Cheongju at around 12:20 a.m. on May 29.

The victim was assaulted by the teenagers and taken to a hospital unresponsive, where she was later declared dead.

Immediately after the incident, the couple reportedly told police that the victim had fallen while playing tag and lost consciousness after her face became pinned beneath another person who was behind her.

Police, however, found evidence that contradicted their account through an autopsy and a forensic examination of seized cellphones.

Investigators believe neither the victim nor the teenage girls wanted to fight, but the couple forced them to take part under what is known in Korean slang as “yacha rules,” which refers to a fight with no formal rules or protective equipment.

BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]