Woman, boyfriend face arrest for drowning husband

Lee Eun-hae, left, and Cho Hyun-soo arrive at Goyang Police Station in Goyang, just northwest of Seoul, April 16. Yonhap

Prosecutors are expected to seek formal arrest warrants as early as Monday for a woman and her boyfriend accused in the drowning death of her husband in 2009 for a hefty life insurance payout, according to officials.

Lee Eun-hae, 31, and her lover, Cho Hyun-soo, 30, were detained Saturday on charges of getting Lee's 39-year-old husband to jump into a river in a valley in Gapyeong, 60 kilometers east of Seoul, even though he was unable to swim, and then letting him drown.

Investigators suspect they committed the crime for 800 million won ($650,000) in insurance money.

Lee and Cho were also accused of attempting to kill the husband that year by food poisoning with pufferfish toxin in February and trying to drown him at a fishing spot in May, the officials said.

Prosecutors at the Incheon District Prosecutors Office said they would apply for court warrants to formally arrest the two suspects for further questioning.

The two had been on the run since going into hiding in December ahead of prosecution questioning. In late March, police put them on their wanted listed and made their identities and photos public.

Law enforcement authorities are required to secure an arrest warrant to further detain a suspect, 48 hours after the suspect's initial arrest, or release the suspect.

Prosecutors are conducting a forensic analysis on a mobile phone found at their hiding place and trying to verify if anyone provided help to the two while they were on the run. (Yonhap)

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