Reiwa 7 (Wa) 424 Corpse Abandonment Defendant Case

On February 14, 2025, the body of South Korean national Choi Min-soo was discovered in a bamboo grove in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, wrapped in plastic sheeting. Police identified the victim through fingerprints and launched a homicide investigation. The next day, another South Korean, Lee Dong-hyun, was arrested at Kansai International Airport while attempting to fly to Seoul. Lee initially faced a charge of corpse abandonment, but prosecutors soon added a murder indictment after autopsy results showed Choi died from strangulation before being dumped. Evidence revealed the two had met in Yokohama over a drug-trafficking dispute that turned violent. The case, docketed as Reiwa 7 (Wa) 424 at the Yokohama District Court, drew intense media coverage due to its cross-border elements and the involvement of foreign nationals on tourist visas.

In April 2026, the Yokohama District Court convicted Lee Dong-hyun of murder and abandonment of a corpse. He was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment with labor, taking into account the severity of post-mortem disposal and the lack of genuine remorse.

Whether the defendant acted with premeditated intent to kill or if the death resulted from a sudden, reckless altercation; admissibility and interpretation of forensic evidence linking the strangulation to the defendant; the influence of the defendant's drug-related background on criminal liability.

The case ignited public and political debate in Japan over crimes committed by short-term foreign entrants, leading to calls for stricter visa screening and enhanced police cooperation with South Korea. It also exacerbated anti-Korean sentiment in some online communities, prompting human rights groups to warn against ethnic profiling.