"Why Did My Easily Frightened Daughter Go to the Palm Tree Farm...?" Jang Miran's Father Questions Site Where Her Body Was Found

Watching Over His Daughter Before the Funeral
Father: "One Person's Misconduct... Can't Blame the Entire Police Force"

The father of Jang Miran (37), who was found dead in Jeju 104 days after going missing, expressed doubts, saying his daughter had always been afraid of palm tree farms and never went near them.

According to Yonhap News Agency on the 27th, Mr. Jang, the father, said ahead of his daughter's funeral that day, "My daughter told her boyfriend that 'palm tree farms are scary' and that it's a place she didn't want to go, and reportedly, she never went anywhere near there."

On the 26th, a privacy screen was installed at a palm tree farm in Hallim-eup, Jeju City, where the body of missing person Miran Jang was found. Photo by Yonhap News

Jang's body was discovered on the 24th at a palm tree farm in Hallim-eup, Jeju City, about 400 meters away from the accommodation where she had been staying long-term. The area is densely populated with palm trees ranging from 3 to 6 meters high, creating a dark atmosphere even during the day, and it is known to be a place that even local residents rarely visit at night.

Her father, Mr. Jang, said, "My daughter was always easily frightened, so I can’t understand why she would have gone there," unable to continue speaking. When asked if he believed that his daughter had been at the palm tree farm for over 100 days, he replied, "To be honest, I’m not sure."

The police estimate that Jang entered the palm tree farm and died sometime between the night of May 12 and the early morning of May 13, before the missing persons report was filed.

However, confusion also arose regarding the explanation of the cause of death provided to the family. Mr. Jang said police had explained that a bone in her neck was broken; however, the police stated that the autopsy found no unusual fractures. According to the police, there was an area in her hyoid bone (neck bone) that appeared to be broken, but the medical examiner determined that it was not a fracture and was instead separated postmortem over time.

The police discovered the body of Jang Miran, who had been missing for several months, at a palm tree farm in Suwon-ri, Hallim-eup, Jeju City on the 24th and are conducting an on-site investigation. Photo by Yonhap News.

Jang's disappearance became more controversial after it was revealed that police had falsely closed the case. Jang's boyfriend filed a missing persons report with the police on May 15, three days after she left her accommodation. However, Officer A, who handled the report, closed the case, telling the reporter that contact had been made with Jang even though there had been no communication. It was also confirmed that the profiling system had been updated with false information stating that Jang had died in a traffic accident.

As a result, the missing persons report was effectively closed only about two hours and 30 minutes after it was filed, and the search at the time was not carried out properly.

Mr. Jang, her father, said, "Because the case was closed after the report was filed on May 15, even the police who came out to search apparently went back. If the search had been conducted properly then, we would have known immediately."

However, he added, "We shouldn’t judge the entire police based on the actions of this one individual (Officer A); the misconduct of a single person harms many," expressing his gratitude to the police and other officials who helped search for his daughter.

Mr. Jang was reportedly emotional as he said, "My daughter was like the pillar of our family." He further stated that the remaining family members are struggling and expressed his wish for no further media exposure.

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