Serial rape-murder suspect ‘unperturbed,’ denies guilt despite DNA match

The prime suspect in a series of at least eight rape-murders in the 1980s and early 1990s has denied all charges in three rounds of questioning, police said Friday. Police identified the suspect, a 56-year-old man surnamed Lee, after a DNA match linked him to three of the murders.Police visited Busan Prison for three consecutive days from Wednesday to Friday to question Lee, who has been serving a life sentence since October 1995 for the rape and murder of his sister-in-law. Police said he flatl

Social AffairsSept. 20, 2019

Finance minister urges cautious approach on S. Korea’s WTO status

With US President Donald Trump casting doubt on the way the World Trade Organization categorizes global economies, South Korea’s finance minister said Friday that the government would take a cautious approach toward its developing-country status and the trade benefits that come along with it. “The other developing economies that are members of the WTO have been raising issues with the benefits that our nation receives through the developing country status, which is why now is the tim

EconomySept. 20, 2019

Hyundai Motor to donate $16 million for pediatric cancer research in US

Hyundai Motor America said Friday that it would donate $16 million this year to fund 76 research projects on children’s cancers.Of that amount, $13.2 million will be donated this month to support a pediatric cancer awareness campaign in the US, said Jose Munoz, CEO of Hyundai Motor’s North America regional office.  As part of its community outreach efforts, Hyundai and its dealerships have participated in the Hyundai Hope on Wheels fundraising project since 1998 to fight pediatr

MobilitySept. 20, 2019

SK chief seeks business expansion in US, vows to invest $10b more

Introducing SK Group as a committed business in US, the group’s chief Chairman Chey Tae-won said the South Korean conglomerate would invest $10 billion in next three years in new growth engines.Chey accompanied by CEOs of SK’s subsidiaries, hosted an evening event in Washington on Thursday to present the future vision of the group and its investment plan in US, officials said.  Held in its office there, SK Night attendees included Karen Kelly, deputy secretary of Department of C

MobilitySept. 20, 2019

[Newsmaker] Police decide to drop pimping charges against former YG chief

Police have dropped pimping charges against Yang Hyun-suk, an idol-turned-K-pop guru who was head of YG Entertainment, one of the biggest K-pop management firms, police officials said Friday.The officials at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said police investigators failed to verify suspicions that Yang arranged sex services for foreign investors in 2014 and sent his case to the prosecution with a recommendation that he not be indicted on pimping charges.The 49-year-old Yang was booked in Ju

Social AffairsSept. 20, 2019

Samsung leaders to announce future vision at SDC 2019 in October

Samsung Electronics will hold its annual gathering of tech leaders around the world, known as Samsung Developer Conference, in San Jose next month, where it is expected to outline its next move in the tech world. Samsung on Friday announced its lineup of keynote speakers for the SDC 2019 event, slated for Oct. 29, which included the tech giant’s executives to take the center stage. The company’s smartphone business chief Koh Dong-jin, the CEO of IT& Mobile Communications Division

TechnologySept. 20, 2019

Prosecution zeroes in on Cho Kuk

An investigation into Justice Minister Cho Kuk is now a possibility as dozens of prosecutors are looking into his suspected involvement in his family’s investment in a private equity fund and alleged attempts to destroy evidence. A number of prosecutors and other staff with expertise in investigating financial crime cases have joined the team scrutinizing Cho’s family at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. They include a prosecutor who investigated stock trade irreg

Social AffairsSept. 20, 2019

Zico to release 1st full-length solo album

K-pop artist and producer Zico will release his first full-length solo album in his eight-year music career later this month, his management agency said Friday.The new album, "Thinking," will be released in two batches, with the first, "Part. 1," to hit the music scene on Sept. 30. The following one, "Part. 2," will be unveiled next month, according to KOZ Entertainment. This marks his first full-length solo album since his debut in 2011 as a member of K-pop bo

K-popSept. 20, 2019

[Newsmaker] S. Korea, US to launch negotiations on defense cost sharing next week : source

South Korea and the United States will launch negotiations in Seoul next week on sharing the cost of upkeep for American troops here, a source with knowledge of the matter said Friday.  Seoul and Washington will likely hold the first round of negotiations on the stationing of the 28,500-strong US Forces Korea on Tuesday and Wednesday, the source told Yonhap News Agency on condition of anonymity.  James DeHart of the State Department will lead the US delegation, the source said. Se

DefenseSept. 20, 2019

BTS leader donates 100 m won for students with hearing impairments

RM, the leader of the popular boy band BTS, has donated 100 million won ($83,745) to help students with hearing impairments, a Seoul school said Friday.The BTS leader made the donation earlier this week in celebration of his birthday, Sept. 12, in a bid to help students receive music education, according to officials at Seoul Samsung School."RM made the donation, expressing his will to help students with hearing difficulties enjoy music through various means," a school official said. S

K-popSept. 20, 2019

UNC confirms Hambak Island in Yellow Sea as N. Korean territory

The United Nations Command recognizes the border island of Hambak in the Yellow Sea as North Korean territory, an official of Seoul's defense ministry said Friday.Controversy erupted recently over the ownership of the small uninhabited island near the Northern Limit Line, the de facto maritime border, after some government data and maps erroneously marked it as South Korean territory. In an interview with Voice of America on Friday, former UNC commander Gen. Vincent Brooks also claimed that the

North KoreaSept. 20, 2019

Airbnb announces plans to go public in 2020

NEW YORK (AFP) -- Airbnb, the internet home stay company which disrupted the hotel and travel industry, said Thursday it plans to make its stock market debut next year but offered few details. Launched in 2008, the company is considered a "unicorn," a startup valued at more than $1 billion even before its initial public offering. The stock launch comes in the wake of other highly anticipated Wall Street launches for companies in the "gig" economy, which have not been resoundi

World NewsSept. 20, 2019

Wall Street slides a day after Fed rate cut

NEW YORK (AFP) -- US stocks went nowhere on Thursday as investors lost their appetite in afternoon trade, a day after the US central bank delivered a widely expected shot of stimulus.At the close, the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2 percent at 27,094.79, erasing earlier gains in the day.Meanwhile, the broader S&P 500 was flat, hovering near record levels at 3,006.79, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq was 0.1 percent higher at 8,182.88.Disney led the Dow lower, shedding 2.6 perc

World BusinessSept. 20, 2019

Typhoon Tapah forecast to bring heavy rain to southern S. Korea

The southern part of the nation is expected experience downpours and strong winds over the weekend as a small slow-moving typhoon is approaching from the south, the state-run weather agency said Friday.  Typhoon Tapah, this year's 17th, took shape 470 kilometers south of Japan's Okinawa in the western Pacific Ocean the previous day and is currently tracking northward, the Korea Meteorological Administration said.As of 3 a.m., the typhoon's central pressure was 992 hectopascals and the maxim

Social AffairsSept. 20, 2019

Suspect again denies role in Hwaseong serial murder cases

A 56-year-old man, who has been identified as a key suspect in South Korea's worst serial murder case, repeated his denial of any involvement in the killings during a second questioning by police, police said Friday.The man, currently serving a prison sentence for a separate crime, is a suspected perpetrator in at least three of the 10 deaths that are collectively known as the Hwaseong serial murder case that occurred in 1986-91. The killing of 10 women, whose ages ranged from 13 to 71, in the s

Social AffairsSept. 20, 2019

2 more suspected cases of African swine fever reported

South Korea's agricultural ministry said Friday it is conducting tests on two more suspected cases of African swine fever after the country confirmed two cases of the deadly virus early this week, with the results set to be delivered later in the day.The suspected ASF cases were reported from two pig farms in Paju, located near the heavily fortified border with North Korea, where the first confirmed ASF case was also reported on Tuesday.The second confirmed ASF case was reported in neighboring Y

Social AffairsSept. 20, 2019

[Box Office] Movies in Theaters this week

The Bad Guys: Reign of Chaos (Korea) Opened Sept. 11Crime, ActionDirected by Son Yong-hoAfter the events of OCN drama “Bad Guys,” legendary gangster Park Woong-cheol (Ma Dong-seok) is back behind bars, and maverick policeman Oh Gu-tak (Kim Sang-joong) -- who put together a team of incarcerated criminals to catch evildoers -- is bed-ridden, struck down by liver cancer. But The “mad dogs” are called upon once again when a police bus flips over and some of the country’

FilmSept. 20, 2019

[Eye Plus] Peaceful Buam-dong rises as hip place

Nestled between two mountains -- Bugaksan and Inwangsan -- Buam-dong in Jongno-gu, Seoul, is a quiet neighborhood often described as an oasis of tranquility not far from the city center. While a large number of Seoul’s residential villages have turned into giant fortresses of high-security high-rise apartment complexes, Buam-dong has kept its old-town feel with low-lying houses, curved roads and ample greenery. Not accessible by Seoul’s massive web of subways, the villages were

CultureSept. 20, 2019

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and packages

Fiery seafood at JW Marriott DongdaemunJW Marriott Dongdaemun Square Seoul’s all-day dining restaurant Tavolo 24 presents the Taste of Sea promotion featuring Sichuan-style seafood favorites. The menu includes cold dishes crafted from fan mussels, sea squirts, abalone, white sea snails, clams, squid and conch flown in fresh from China, plus hot dishes including steamed scallops, snow crab and blue crab, as well as Sichuan specialty mala crawfish, crispy deep-fried sea cucumber and eel, and

FoodSept. 20, 2019

[Weekender] From eyesores to hot spots

Rusty, abandoned factories and warehouses are often massive eyesores, shunned by neighbors for safety concerns. But increasingly, some of these run-down structures are finding new life as venues for the arts, drawing artists, hipsters and tourists with their remarkable aesthetic combination of old and new and historic backgrounds. More than just the visual appeal, creative repurposing is a very economic decision, according to one construction industry insider. “It doesn’t just c

Arts & DesignSept. 20, 2019