Vanished without a trace: Korea's most mystifying unsolved missing person cases

The Korea Times - Oct 22, 2026

Of the roughly 70,000 adults reported missing in Korea every year, nearly all are found within weeks. But a small fraction vanish without a trace, and some stay missing for decades. According to data from the National Police Agency submitted in August to Rep. Chung Choon-saeng of the Rebuilding Korea Party, the share of missing adult cases resolved within 30 days has stayed near 99 percent over the past five years. It stood at 98.8 percent in 2022, 98.9 percent in 2023, 98.8 percent in 2024, 99 percent in 2025 and 99.4 percent through July 2026. For the slim remainder, however, investigators run out of leads. Here are some of Korea’s most baffling adult missing person cases that remain unsolved. Veterinary student Lee Yun-hee (2006) Lee Yun-hee, a veterinary student at Jeonbuk National University in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, went missing 20 years ago and has never been found. On June 5, 2006, she attended an end-of-semester gathering with professors and classmates at a restaurant roughly 1.5 kilometers from her studio apartment. She returned home around 2:30 a.m. the next day. Lee

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