GA - See Hee Cho , South Korean woman’s body found in trunk of car outside Korean spa Jeju Sauna, Soldiers of Christ members, 12 Sep ‘23 *7 arrests*

[imstilla.grandma]

Gwinnett County police said a 911 caller reported a possible body in a vehicle near the Jeju Sauna on Gwinnett Place Drive in unincorporated Duluth around 10:50 p.m. on Sept. 12. When police arrived at the scene, they actually found the body of a woman in the trunk of a silver Jaguar sedan.

On Thursday, the department identified the suspects as Lawrenceville residents: Joonhyun Lee, 22; Joonho Lee, 26; Hyunji Lee, 25; Gawon Lee, 26; Junyeoug Lee, 15; and Suwanee resident Eric Hyun, 26.

During a news conference Thursday, Gwinnett police said the female victim is from South Korea and came to the Atlanta area this summer to join Soldiers of Christ, a religious organization to which the suspects allegedly belong.

Her identity has not been released because police have not yet contacted her family in South Korea.

Although her exact cause of death has not yet been determined, police believe malnutrition may have been a factor, according to the coroner’s office. Investigators believe the victim, whose body weighed about 70 pounds when discovered, was repeatedly beaten and starved to death during his captivity.

Georgia authorities arrest five adults and a teenager after the body was found in the trunk of a car outside the spa

georgialawnews.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

The medical examiner has not released an official cause of death, but police said it appears the beatings and malnourishment led to the death. The woman, in her 20s or 30s, weighed 70 pounds at the time of her death and may have been in the trunk for days.

Police said Eric Hyun, 26; Juoonhyum Lee, 22; Joonho Lee, 26; Hyunji Lee, 25; Gawom Lee, 26; and Junyeoug Lee, 15, have all been charged with felony murder, imprisonment, tampering with evidence, and concealing a death.

Investigators said they believe Hyun drove the Jaguar to Jeju, parked it there, and had a family member pick him up and take him to the hospital for treatment for an unrelated injury, WSB reported. Then, he sent the family member back to the car to retrieve a personal item. That person found the body and called 911

Woman Found Dead in Trunk of Jaguar Was Lured to U.S. to Join ‘Religious Group,’ Then Beaten and Starved: Cops

A woman found dead in the trunk of a car outside a Georgia sauna this week was lured to the United States to join a religious group and then beaten and starved to death. Gwinnett County police announced Thursday they had arrested six people — five adults and a 15-year-old boy — in the woman’s …

www.crimeonline.com

 

[Leilei]

Street gang charges now.

Gwinnett County murder suspects also facing criminal street gang charges after body found in trunk

Bond has been denied for four of the suspects arrested after a burned female body, wrapped in a blanket, was found earlier this week in the trunk of a silver Jaguar outside a popular spa in Gwinnett County.

www.fox5atlanta.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Each of them also faces multiple gang-related charges. Under Georgia law, a criminal street gang is “any organization, association, or group of three or more persons associated in fact, whether formal or informal, which engages in criminal gang activity.”

Authorities believe the victim recently moved to the United States from South Korea to join a religious organization, known as Soldiers of Christ. The suspects referred to themselves as members of the group, investigators said.

A police spokesperson said Friday that investigators believe they have arrested everyone who is involved and are not looking into Soldiers of Christ any further.

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/6-soldiers-of-christ-members-are-in-custody-18368397.php#

 

[Ebon]

6 arrested for allegedly holding woman captive and starving her, then leaving body in trunk

DULUTH, Ga. (TCD) -- Six people were arrested last week in connection with the death of a woman who had recently moved to the United States from South Korea believing she was joining a religious group but was held captive and starved instead.

truecrimedaily.com

DULUTH, Ga. (TCD) -- Six people were arrested last week in connection with the death of a woman who had recently moved to the United States from South Korea believing she was joining a religious group but was held captive and starved instead.

On Sept. 12 at approximately 10:50 p.m., Gwinnett County Police Department officers were called to 3555 Gwinnett Place Drive after a man called 911 to report finding a dead body in a trunk.

According to Gwinnett County Police, the victim, who was not named, came to the United States to join a religious group called the Soldiers of Christ. The statement said she was "subjected to beatings and malnourished for weeks."

Gwinnett Police arrested Hyun along with Gawom Lee and Joonho Lee, both 26, 22-year-old Joonhyum Lee, 25-year-old Hyunji Lee, and 15-year-old Junyeoug Lee. They are all being charged with felony murder, false imprisonment, tampering with evidence, and concealing the death of another.

 

[LadyL]

Is it relevant that all the suspects have the last name Lee? I know in some countries it wouldn't necessarily indicate that these people are related.

 

[Goecke]

Is it relevant that all the suspects have the last name Lee? I know in some countries it wouldn't necessarily indicate that these people are related.

This article calls the suspects 'a family': Gwinnett County murder suspects also facing criminal street gang charges after body found in trunk
Lee is an extremely common Korean last name, so honestly it could go either way, but in this case it seems like they are actually related to each other.

 

[vls12345]

7th arrest made, disturbing new details revealed in Gwinnett “house of horrors” murder case

The group is accused of luring a woman from South Korean to the U.S. as part of a "religious group."

www.wsbtv.com

 

[vls12345]

7th arrest made, disturbing new details revealed in Gwinnett “house of horrors” murder case

The group is accused of luring a woman from South Korean to the U.S. as part of a "religious group."

www.wsbtv.com

 

[AzPistonsGirl]

from 7th arrest made, disturbing new details revealed in Gwinnett “house of horrors” murder case

Police have arrested the mother of one of six suspects accused of luring a woman to the U.S. to join a “religious group,” and then beating and starving her to death.
. . . .
Boyle also accused the Lee family of convincing Hyun to wire thousands of dollars to Korea and using his credit to buy a home in Suwanee to house the church.

“There are still other members of this religious extremist group at large and the Gwinnett County Police and District Attorney’s Office continue to investigate this case,” Boyle said.

 

[Goecke]

The victim, See Hee Cho, was found dead in the trunk of a Jaguar in front of a popular Korean spa in Gwinnett County last month.

BBM, can we add the victim's name to the title?

 

[vls12345]

Watch live 'Soldiers of Christ' members who allegedly beaten, starved woman to death in court

The members are accused of beating, starving and torturing a woman to her death in a basement at a Gwinnett County home.

www.11alive.com

 

[vls12345]

Police: 'Soldiers of Christ' took videos of themselves torturing woman they were initiating into their group

A Gwinnett County judge on Thursday ruled there is probable cause to put at least five of the seven defendants on trial.

www.11alive.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Police have gone through messages the defendants sent in Korean and interviewed Cho's mother, who lives in South Korea and said her daughter went to the U.S. to try to recover from a traumatic incident that had left her depressed, according to Carter

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/nation-world/national/article280758245.html

“She was standing on her head halfway, her hands behind her back," Carter said, describing one of the videos. "There was a belt; she was being whipped with what appeared to be a belt.”

Police: 'Soldiers of Christ' took videos of themselves torturing woman they were initiating into their group

A Gwinnett County judge on Thursday ruled there is probable cause to put at least five of the seven defendants on trial.

www.11alive.com

 

[masquerading]

Slightly unrelated but also slightly related question, is Soldiers of Christ US-based or SK-based? Wondering because recently a lot has been coming out about the JMS/Jesus Morning Star religious group, which operates in SK and also seems to be in the business of luring vulnerable people from other countries. I haven’t heard of a death occurring because of them, but many stories of brainwashing and psychological abuse.

It bothers me so deeply when people use religion to manipulate. Seehee likely truly believed she was coming here for a fresh start, to really get in touch with her spirituality and find out where she wants to go next. Rest easy Seehee, hopefully your killers will face justice soon.

 

[Inthedetails]

Slightly unrelated but also slightly related question, is Soldiers of Christ US-based or SK-based? Wondering because recently a lot has been coming out about the JMS/Jesus Morning Star religious group, which operates in SK and also seems to be in the business of luring vulnerable people from other countries. I haven’t heard of a death occurring because of them, but many stories of brainwashing and psychological abuse.

It bothers me so deeply when people use religion to manipulate. Seehee likely truly believed she was coming here for a fresh start, to really get in touch with her spirituality and find out where she wants to go next. Rest easy Seehee, hopefully your killers will face justice soon.

Anyone know anything about this religious group? Is it a cult? A front for illegal activities? I've never heard of it.

jmo

 

[imstilla.grandma]

*intro:
This chapter examines the mission ethos of the hyper-Korean evangelical missionaries who came to the U.S. from the 1970s to revitalize America. It delves into what the Korean missionaries had to offer in terms of their faith that a predominately Christian nation did not already have. It argues that the Korean missionaries in America likened themselves as spiritual soldiers and came to the U.S. equipped with a “soldier spirit” to evangelize Americans. As mid-twentieth-century Koreans from the “underside of history,” the Korean missionaries did not have more worldly power and authority than the Americans they sought to proselytize. They did, however, have an abundance of evangelical zeal and spiritual fervor—a hyper-Korean evangelical “soldier spirit.” A “soldier spirit,” bolstered by a mission-centered military-like organization, is what the hyper-Korean evangelicals transported to America to spiritually revitalize the “history-maker” nation

The Spirit Moves West, with Soldier Spirit

Abstract. This chapter examines the mission ethos of the hyper-Korean evangelical missionaries who came to the U.S. from the 1970s to revitalize America. It del

academic.oup.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Eric Hyun, 26, one of six people cops have charged with murder, false imprisonment, evidence tampering and concealing a death, according to their report. The others were named as Gawom Lee, 26; Joonho Lee, 28; Juoonhyum Lee, 22; Hyunji Lee, 25, along with a 15-year-old minor. Three of the men are brothers, WSB-TV reported.

Dead Woman in Trunk Came From Korea to Join ‘Soldiers of Christ’: Police

The unnamed woman was beaten and starved before she died, police say.

www.thedailybeast.com

 

[vls12345]

'Soldiers of Christ' killing unsettles Korean Americans in Georgia and stokes fear of cults

The slaying of a South Korean woman during an initiation process for a group has shocked the large Korean American community in metro Atlanta.

www.11alive.com

"Community leaders say what's even more unsettling is the relatively young ages of most of the defendants — five are in their 20s and one is 15 — and their religious ties. The mom and brothers, at least for a time, attended church locally, and the father is a pastor in the area. He has not been charged."