The Story of South Korea's Notorious Raincoat Killer

Yoo Young-chul, a South Korean serial killer, sex offender, and cannibal, was found guilty of 20 murders, mostly targeting prostitutes and wealthy elderly women.

He burned the bodies of three victims and mutilated 11 others, even consuming the livers of some. Yoo was arrested in July 2004 and admitted to committing the crimes in order to teach a lesson to promiscuous women and wealthy individuals he believed had done wrong. His crimes took place between September 2003 and July 2004.

Before committing the series of murders that he is most infamous for, Yoo Young-chul had been convicted 14 times for various charges and had spent a total of seven years in prison. It is unclear what specific offenses he had been found guilty of prior to his murderous spree.

Yoo Young Serial Killings

During the period spanning from September to November 2003, Yoo Young-chul committed a series of murders by breaking into the residences of several affluent elderly women and using a hammer to fatally bludgeon them.

He attempted to make the crime scenes look like robbery-homicides, but did not take any money, which perplexed the police. As the investigation intensified, Yoo changed his focus to female masseuses.

Beginning in March 2004, Yoo lured prostitutes to his home in western Seoul and after having sex with them, he bludgeoned and dismembered them to prevent their identification.

Yoo mutilated the bodies of his victims and then used axes, knives, and scissors to dismember them into 16-18 pieces. To prevent their identification, he removed their fingertips and stuffed their remains into garbage bags, which he buried in a mountainous area near Bongwon Temple.

Yoo Arrested

From May to July 2004, Yoo Young-chul murdered at least 11 women, but their deaths did not raise much alarm compared to the murders of wealthy seniors.

However, the owners of the massage parlors where the victims worked began to suspect that something was amiss. Yoo made a crucial mistake when he used a phone belonging to one of his victims to call a massage parlor. The owner recognized the phone number and reported it to the police.

Despite the police sending an officer to intercept Yoo, the officer left the scene before Yoo arrived. As a result, when Yoo arrived at the motel where he had planned to meet his victim, it was the massage parlor employees who apprehended him.

He was handed over to the police. While in custody, Yoo pretended to have epilepsy and escaped after his restraints were loosened, but was recaptured 12 hours later.

During the initial stages of his interrogation, Yoo Young-chul confessed to being responsible for the deaths of 19 individuals. Later, on July 18, 2004, he confessed to an additional murder of a 44-year-old male street vendor.

Several day later, Yoo confessed to killing 26 individuals but provided no further details.

Why Did Yoo Carry Out The Killings

Yoo later confessed to being inspired by the serial killer Jeong Du-yeong, who had murdered nine wealthy people in Busan from 1999 to 2000.

Yoo's hatred for women had intensified after his girlfriend left him. He had already harbored a strong resentment towards women since his divorce in 1992, and had even contemplated killing his ex-wife.

Yoo's former wife had worked at a massage parlor, and his girlfriend had worked in a "telephone room," a place often associated with prostitution. As a result, Yoo targeted women who resembled them, earning him the nickname "Raincoat Killer."

A psychologist who assessed Yoo concluded that he was not mentally ill, but exhibited signs typically associated with anti-social disorder, where a person creates their own belief system based on distrust of moral and social norms.

Trial and Sentencing

Yoo Young-chul was convicted of 20 counts of homicide in December 2004 and was originally sentenced to death. However, as South Korea has suspended all executions, Yoo is currently serving his sentence at the Seoul Detention Center.

References :

Serial Killer Claims to Have Eaten Victims' Organs

Yoo Young-chul Included in World’s 31 Serial Killers

Suspect held in killings of masseuses, elderly