Chinese Lecturer Indicted in South Korea Over Student's Killing

Prosecutors in Daegu, South Korea, indicted a 31-year-old Chinese university lecturer on September 21 over the alleged killing of a 25-year-old Chinese student and the concealment and disposal of her remains, the Daegu District Prosecutors' Office said, according to local media reports.

The defendant, identified as Zheng Changsheng, faces charges including murder, mutilation and abandonment of a body, concealment of a body, and obstruction of official duties by deception.

Prosecutors said Zheng killed the woman, identified by the alias Wenwen, at an apartment in Hayang-eup, Gyeongsan, North Gyeongsang Province, about 6am on August 20.

She had taken one of his courses, they said. Investigators allege that he dismembered her remains and left them at waste sites in remote mountain areas and along a river across five areas: Gyeongsan, Gyeongju and Sangju in North Gyeongsang Province, Daegu, and Gunpo in Gyeonggi Province. Some remains were allegedly kept at his home.

After the killing, Zheng reported the woman missing, prosecutors said. They also allege that he dressed as a woman and traveled to Daegu with her phone in an attempt to mislead investigators.

Zheng claimed the victim was his girlfriend and that disclosure of their relationship would lead to disciplinary action or cost him his university lecturer position. Police previously said Zheng told them the couple had argued and that the woman had threatened to disclose the relationship to the university.

Police reviewed nearby surveillance footage and found remains and suspected evidence at Zheng's home before detaining him on September 4 and referring the case to prosecutors.

A psychopathy assessment reportedly found that his score was below South Korea's threshold of 25 out of 40. The prosecutors' office said it would seek punishment commensurate with the alleged crimes.