YONGSAN GARRISON, South Korea — More than a month after a Camp Walker civilian employee filed a rape complaint against a U.S. worker and his girlfriend, South Korean police will question the 37-year-old American and his 33-year-old Korean girlfriend in connection with the case, officials said Wednesday.
Cpl. Ma Soon-yul, of the Taegu Nambu Police Station’s investigation division, plans to question the two on Friday, he said.
Ma interviewed the Camp Walker employee, a 25-year-old woman who filed the complaint, on Aug. 12, eight days after she formally accused the two suspects.
The woman’s written complaint stated that she went to a Pusan beer festival with the man and his girlfriend in early August. To save money, Ma said, the three reserved one motel room, returning to it after 2 a.m.
After showering, the man and his girlfriend asked the woman to have sex with them and she refused, Ma said. The man’s girlfriend stopped the other woman when she tried to leave the motel room, the complaint stated. After making her lie down, the two jumped on the woman, unbuttoned her pants and raped her, it adds.
Ma said his interview with the woman matched what was in the complaint. She spent the night with them in the motel room after she was attacked, Ma said, and had breakfast with them the next morning. The three returned to Taegu together.
Under South Korean law, police officials have two months to investigate a case before turning over their findings to the prosecutor’s office. The questioning was postponed due to last month’s Universiade Games, an international sporting competition in Taegu.
Ma said he felt a lack of physical evidence removed any time pressure to conduct the investigation.
“I only got the written statement, so it doesn’t matter” when the interviews take place, he claimed.
Ma said a U.S. representative and translator will accompany the American male, who works at Camp Henry, during the questioning.
Police said if further questioning is needed, the woman and the two she accused will be summoned together.
