JEJU ISLAND – Two Chinese men are being sought by police after they stole six urns containing human remains from a temple in Jeju Island and demanded a ransom of $2 million USD.
The incident occurred on the morning of the 24th when the two men, in their 40s, broke into a columbarium at the temple and stole the urns. They then hid the urns in two locations in a nearby mountain before fleeing to Cambodia via Hong Kong.
The men then sent a video of the stolen urns to the temple, demanding $2 million USD in exchange for their return.
The police were able to recover all six urns and return them to the families.
The police are currently searching for the two suspects and have requested an Interpol red notice.
The police have also urged temples to install better security measures, such as locks and CCTV cameras, to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future. They also urged victims to report any incidents immediately to the police.
This incident comes as the number of crimes committed by Chinese nationals in Jeju Island has been on the rise in recent years.
According to police statistics, the number of Chinese nationals arrested for crimes in Jeju Island has increased from 505 in 2021 to 608 in 2024 (as of February 26, 2025).
Police are investigating whether the two men involved in the urn theft are also connected to other crimes in Jeju Island.
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