▲ Syngman Rhee - Lee Jeong-hak


It was revealed that Syngman Rhee, the main culprit in the Daejeon bank robbery murder 22 years ago, reported to the police that he knew the true culprit of the murder of Sergeant Baekseon Ki in Jeonju the following year.

Syngman Rhee, who was sentenced to life imprisonment at the first trial last month, reportedly claimed to be the work of Lee Jeong-hak, an accomplice in the Daejeon bank robbery murder case.

According to media coverage today (7th), Syngman Rhee, who was arrested and charged with robbery-murder and is in prison, recently sent a letter to the Jeonbuk Police stating that he "knows the true culprit of the murder of the Jeonju police officer, which remained unsolved."

Rhee confessed that the crime was committed by Lee Jeong-hak and that he knew the location of the pistol that disappeared from the scene.

The police found a .38-caliber firearm in Ulsan, identified by Syngman Rhee, and confirmed that the serial number matched the firearm Sergeant Baek was carrying at the time.

Sergeant Baek's murder and pistol theft case was a representative long-term unsolved incident in North Jeolla Province, and at around 00:50 on September 20, 2002, Sergeant Baek, who was guarding the police station alone, was found lying bleeding by a fellow police officer.

The gunman killed Sergeant White with a weapon, then fled with a .38-caliber pistol loaded with four live ammunition and one scare bullet he was wearing at his waist.

A handgun, a crucial artifact, was found, but since the incident was 21 years ago, it will take time to identify the suspect.

So far, the credibility of Rhee's statement cannot be assured, but given that the firearm was found in the place where Rhee spoke, it seems likely that one or both of them were involved in the crime in some way.

Meanwhile, attention is drawn to the background of Syngman Rhee's claim that Lee Jeong-hak is guilty.

There is speculation that a sense of betrayal of an accomplice may have played a role.

In fact, Rhee expressed his anger at Lee Jeong-hak, who confessed to all the crimes during the last trial.

On January 16, Rhee said at the hearing of the Criminal Division 12 of the Daejeon District Law (Chief Judge Na Sang-hoon), "I have to say that Lee Jeong-hak is a bit cunning. I have tears of blood because I want to know how long I want to live," he said, adding, "I just said that I would die because of the word friend, and that I would overwrite everything."

Lee's confession played a big role in Rhee's arrest, but Rhee, seemingly betrayed, repeatedly denied killing with a pistol, saying, "I promised to take him to the grave...", adding, "I don't have to shoot because I can subdue you even if I get stuck 3 to 1."

In response, the court of the first instance sentenced Rhee to life imprisonment on 17 March, saying, "Rhee has no qualms about opening the war, such as aiming shots directly at the victim with a highly lethal pistol, but attributing it to the fault of his accomplice."

It is also observed that he may have confessed to the crime of an accomplice in the face of whether it was necessary to hide the crime anymore after being sentenced to life imprisonment.

Rhee and Jeonghak were arrested and charged with killing Kim Mo, then 45, the head of the bank's cashier department, with a .38-caliber pistol, and fleeing after blocking a cash truck in the underground parking lot of Kookmin Bank in Dunsan-dong, Seo-gu, Daejeon at around 10 a.m. on December 21, 2001.

The firearm they used was taken away from a police officer who was on foot patrol in the area of Songchon-dong, Daedeok-gu at around 0:00 on October 15, two months before the crime.

The case remained unsolved for a long time, but the police matched the DNA information of the masks and handkerchiefs found in the car used in the crime with DNA from an illegal gaming venue in North Chungcheongbuk and arrested the two men on August 25 last year, 7,553 days after the incident.