South Korean charged in murder, body found in Pattaya barrel

South Korean prosecutors indicted a suspect involved in the murder of a fellow Korean, whose body was discovered in a concrete-filled barrel in a reservoir near Pattaya.

The Changwon District Prosecutors Office indicted the suspect, in his 20s, on charges of murder and abandonment of a body overseas. The indictment was reported by Yonhap news agency today.

The identities of both the suspect and the victim have been withheld by South Korean prosecutors. However, Thai police previously identified the accused as Lee Roun and the victim as 34 years old, Roh Eui-jong.

Lee Roun was apprehended in Jeongeup City, located about 210 kilometres south of Seoul, after fleeing from Thailand last month.

Lee and two alleged accomplices are accused of murdering Roh in Thailand. The victim’s body was subsequently placed in a barrel filled with concrete and discarded into Map Prachan reservoir in Bang Lamung district, near Pattaya, in May.

Another suspect, 27 years old, Lee Young Jin, was captured while hiding in Phnom Penh and has since been sent back to Thailand. Yonhap reported that South Korean police are in discussions with Thai authorities about extraditing him to Seoul to face charges.

The third alleged accomplice, Kim Hyeonng Won, remains at large and is believed to have crossed the border into Myanmar.

A prosecutor was quoted by the South Korean news agency as saying that in search of money and valuables, the suspects approached, murdered him [the victim] and abandoned his body in a foreign country beyond South Korea’s jurisdiction.

The investigation continues as authorities work to locate the remaining suspect and bring those involved to justice.

In related news, a suspect was arrested for the murder of a 21 year old Phetchaburi woman, Police apprehended a man suspected of murdering the woman and disposing of her body in Phetchaburi. Following an arrest warrant, officers are currently interrogating the suspect.