S.korean burglar fakes death to elude police

SOUTH KOREA: A 47-year-old South Korean man has been arrested for faking his death with the help of his wife in an attempt to elude police on his trail over a theft, a news report said Wednesday.

Police had had difficulty hunting down the suspected burglar, identified only by his last name, Chung, as all official records showed him dead for the past three years, Seoul’s Dong-A Ilbo newspaper reported.

Chung stole 200 kilograms (440 pounds) of electrical wire worth seven million won (7,500 US dollars) from a warehouse in Daejeon, south of Seoul last year, Dong-A reported, quoting police.

But for months, Chung, dead on paper, had cleverly countered witness reports and claims against him in the burglary case, it said.

Police finally arrested Chung on Tuesday and found out his wife made a false report to the government that he died of a liver disease in 2005, it said.

“Chung is suspected of orchestrating the false report of his death to habitually commit crimes,” a police investigator was quoted as saying.

Seoul , Wednesday, AFP