It looks like the mystery surrounding a serial murder case from the 1980s in Korea could be solved after all.
The police was able to crack a lead in the case thanks to a huge jump in DNA analysis technology.
Won Jung-hwan has this story.
Thirty years after a string of murders in Hwaseong City, the South Korean police have announced that they now have a strong lead in the case.
The investigation team held a press briefing on Thursday,… revealing details related to the country's worst serial murder case.
They said they have initially identified a prime suspect after the National Forensic Service found that DNA collected from the underwear of one of the victims matched the DNA of the suspect.
The police say they have also found a DNA match for two other victims of the serial killing.
"So far, we have been informed that the DNA from the suspect matches in three of the murder cases, and the investigation is currently underway."
The police are yet to find any new evidence in the other seven cases.
But DNA technology seems to have played a key role identifying the suspect,… who is involved in at least one of the deaths of 10 women who were raped and brutally killed in rural parts of Hwaseong between 1986 and 1991.
The police said as the technology has developed significantly compared to the 1980s,… they decided to send some of their material evidence to the state's forensic agency back in July to request thorough DNA analysis.
And they plan to continue their investigation until the public knows the truth.
"We will continue to conduct DNA assessments with the National Forensic Service, and will thoroughly investigate the connection between the prime suspect and the serial murders through detailed analysis of the investigation record and the related persons involved."
The suspect, who is in his 50s, is currently in prison for a similar crime. He has denied the allegations from the first investigation.
But even if the suspect turns out to be the murderer in the Hwaseong case,... he will not be punished for those crimes as the statute of limitations expired in April 2006.
The crime received a lot of attention when it was made into the movie 'Memories of Murder' in 2003.
More than 2 million police officers, a record number for a single case, were mobilized to investigate the murders.
And over 20-thousand people were investigated for those murders a figure that hasn't been broken since.
Won Jung-hwan, Arirang News.
