Korean man 'admits seven murders'


Kang Ho-sun was initially arrested for the murder of a student

A South Korean man has admitted murdering seven women in a two-year killing spree sparked by the death of his wife, detectives have said.

Kang Ho-sun said he had buried several bodies near his farm in Suwon, 30km (20 miles) south of Seoul. Investigators are now searching the area.

He told police he would approach women for sex, or with the intention to rape them, and would later strangle them.
Police said they expected to charge him with murder later.

'State of despair'

Mr Kang was arrested on suspicion of killing a student, who was discovered in a paddy field on Sunday.

He admitted her murder and said he had killed six other women in the past two years - strangling them with a pair of stockings.

Park Hak-geun, police chief in Suwon, said Mr Kang had revealed it had been the death of his wife in a house-fire in 2005 that had led to his killing spree.

Mr Park said the suspect had told him his wife's death left him in a state of despair "that made him wander mindlessly through the country, developing the urge to kill women on sight".

Mr Park added: "He has testified that he was unable to hold himself back after committing the first crime."

The police chief said that Mr Kang is also suspected of starting that the fire that killed his wife and mother-in-law.