Hwaseong Serial Murders: The Korean Zodiac Killer
The notorious cold case of South Korea
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Known as the Korean zodiac killer, Lee Choon Jae was convicted for killing his sister-in-law in 1994 and 15 other murders, of which 10 belonged to the Hwaseong murders, which occurred between 1986 and 1991.
Early life
Lee Choon Jae (이춘재) was born on January 31, 1963, in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi. He resided there for 30 years. Some years later his sister drowned and he was deeply affected by it. He claimed that he was sexually assaulted by an older sibling, which might be a great motive for his sexual nature in his killings. But this claim doesn't have any evidence.
He graduated high school in February 1983 and joined the Korean Army as a Tank pilot. After being discharged on January 23, 1986, he worked for an electric parts company. In 1990, he joined a parent construction company in Cheongpa, Yongsan, where without a license he became a crane driver. The next year he worked as a crane driver in an aggregate company in Cheongwon, Chungcheongbuk. He married a bookkeeper in April 1992 and quit his job in March 1993.
