Suspicious Circumstances of Murder in Songpa Family Death Case Involving Mother-in-Law and Daughter

Preliminary Opinion of the National Forensic Service

Regarding the case of five family members found dead in Songpa-gu, Seoul, the National Forensic Service has verbally indicated that the mother-in-law and daughter are presumed to have died from homicide.

According to the Songpa Police Station on the 25th, autopsy results for four family members showed that the husband and sister-in-law died from neck compression asphyxiation, while the mother-in-law and daughter are presumed to have died from neck compression asphyxiation caused by external force. A police official stated, “No unusual injuries that could have caused other deaths were found, and detailed examinations for toxins and other substances will be conducted.” The detailed examination results are expected to take about a month.

The woman in her 40s, Ms. Oh, fell from the rooftop of an apartment in Jamsil-dong, Songpa-gu, where her paternal family resides, at around 7:29 a.m. on the 23rd. During the investigation of Ms. Oh’s case, the bodies of her husband, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law were found in a villa in Songpa-dong, and the body of her elementary school-aged daughter was found in a hotel in Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi Province. Communication records revealed that Ms. Oh attempted to contact her husband until the morning of the previous day. A police official explained, “It is possible that Ms. Oh was unaware of the deaths of her in-laws.”

The police believe that the Oh family was experiencing overall financial difficulties. It is reported that Ms. Oh had been moving between lodging facilities with her elementary school-aged daughter for several months to avoid debt collection. They had an outstanding city gas bill of 1,873,000 KRW for the villa, and notices of supply suspension and overdue payment details were sent. The husband received a debt collection notice for unpaid credit card charges amounting to 975,000 KRW. A will, presumed to have been written by the husband and sister-in-law, reportedly contained content indicating conflicts over family debts and credits.

※ If you or someone around you is struggling with difficult issues such as depression, you can receive 24-hour professional counseling through the Suicide Prevention Hotline 1393, Mental Health Counseling 1577-0199, Hope Call 129, Lifeline 1588-9191, Youth Hotline 1388, Youth Mobile Counseling app ‘Da Deureojul Gae,’ KakaoTalk, and other services.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.