[Newsis]
[Newsis]

The family of a missing Jeju woman at the center of a controversy over an allegedly falsified police case closure has come forward to publicly describe her.

The missing woman is Jang Mi-ran, 37, who stood 158 centimeters tall and had a slender build. She was wearing a gold bracelet when she disappeared in May.

Jang had relocated to Jeju about 10 years ago and had been living with a partner since.

She left home late on the night of May 12 or in the early hours of May 13 and has not been seen since.

Her family reported her missing to police in mid-May after she failed to return home. A junior officer identified as Officer A, who was on night duty at the time, told a superior that contact had been made with the reported person and closed the case.

The family filed a second missing persons report last month, saying they still could not reach Jang. Police reopened the investigation, treating both voluntary departure and disappearance as possible scenarios.

A dedicated missing persons investigation team has pursued multiple lines of inquiry, but Jang's whereabouts remain unknown. No signs of activity have been confirmed — no card transactions, mobile phone records or hospital visits.

Police are focusing on locating Jang while also investigating whether Officer A actually spoke with her by phone.

Officer A is also under investigation on charges of entering a women's restroom at a police station on July 22, in violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Sexual Crimes. He was relieved of duty on Aug. 11.

"We have formed a dedicated missing persons investigation team and expanded our investigative personnel to focus on finding the missing woman," police said.


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