The remains of a South Korean woman were discovered in a car outside of a spa in Georgia, and police believe that she was tortured and starved to death after coming to join a religious organization.
A spokesperson for the Gwinnett County Police Department spoke to reporters at a media briefing on Thursday about the incident.
The woman was discovered in the trunk of a silver Jaguar in front of Jeju Sauna, a popular Korean spa business in Duluth, at about 11 p.m. on Tuesday.
Police said that the woman was first brought to the U.S. from South Korea during the summer and that she was subjected to beatings and malnourishment until she died.
Six suspects have been arrested in relation to the woman’s death. All of them lived in the same house, and some of them are related to each other. Included in the arrests are one 15-year-old juvenile. All of the suspects are U.S. citizens except for one.
The criminal warrant says the suspects hid the body of the woman at the home for a time, then later wrapped her remains in a blanket and placed them in the trunk of the car. Police said she likely died in August and had been in the back of the vehicle for several days before she was discovered.
Her remains reportedly weighed only 70 pounds when discovered.
“The Medical Examiner’s Office believes malnourishment could be a contributing factor to her death. The exact cause of death is still under investigation,” read a police news release.
A photograph from the basement of the home showed redacted portions where blood was discovered, according to police.
The victim’s identity has not been released as police are working to contact her next of kin in South Korea.
The suspects are facing charges of false imprisonment, felony murder, concealing the death of another, and tampering with evidence.
Police said they have no evidence the spa was involved in the death of the woman.
Here’s a local news report about the incident:
Woman’s body found in car trunk after being beaten, starved in basement, suspects arrested: policewww.youtube.com
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