▲ A Chinese man in his 30s, surnamed Jeong, is escorted to Gyeongsan Police Station on Aug. 25, 2026, on suspicion of murdering a Chinese female student in her 20s in the southeastern city. (Yonhap)

(ATTN: UPDATES with additional findings on suspect)

GYEONGSAN, South Korea, Aug. 26 (Yonhap) -- Police said Wednesday they were questioning a Chinese man in his 30s on suspicion of murdering a female graduate student, also from China, who was found dead in the southeastern city of Gyeongsan.

The victim, a local university student in her 20s, was found dead at the suspect's residence Tuesday, five days after all communication with her had been lost and four days after she was reported missing by the man, according to Gyeongsan Police Station.

The suspect, surnamed Jeong, was a lecturer at the university who taught two classes in the first semester with plans to teach two classes in the second semester as well, according to university officials.

He was seen in CCTV footage entering his residence with the victim at around 2 p.m. Thursday, the police said. Later, he was seen leaving the premises dressed as a woman and wearing a hat, heading to Dongdaegu Station and changing clothes at a nearby restroom before returning home.

He was found to have turned off the victim's phone at one point, according to the police.

The police suspect Jeong tried to throw investigators off course and plan to charge him with obstruction of official duties.

Police also found evidence that Jeong mutilated and abandoned parts of the body, leading them to launch a search at a nearby incineration facility and other locations where they could have been dumped.

Jeong was apprehended Tuesday on a street in the city and detained at the police station the same day.

The police said they plan to conduct an autopsy on the body to determine the exact cause and time of death. Afterward, they plan to transfer the body to the victim's family.

A relative currently staying in South Korea has been notified of the student's death.

The suspect and the victim were acquaintances, those close to the victim have said.

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