Exponent Online


8/17/2001	Welcome Back Issue

Suspect in Purdue homicides may face death penalty

MEMORIAL MARCH: Members of the Purdue community gather in front Stewart Center preparing for a walk to Purdue Village in rememberance of two slain Korean sisters.

By Laura Pelner
Campus Editor

The Purdue student suspected of murdering two South Korean sisters in a Purdue Village apartment on Aug. 2 could face 45 to 130 years in prison, the death penalty or life in jail without parole.

Zhan Yin, 27, a graduate student in biology, and suspected killer of Yeunkyung Woo, 31, a graduate student in biology, and her sister Hyo Kyung Woo, 29, of Chicago, has 12 counts filed against him in the Tippecanoe County Superior Court.

The charges, which were filed Monday, consisting of two counts of murder, two counts of murder while attempting to commit burglary or robbery, two counts of robbery, two counts of confinement, two counts of theft and single counts of both burglary and attempted arson.

All the charges are felonies, meaning each one carries a possibility of jail time. Tim Kern, deputy prosecutor, said the murder counts each carry a jail term of 45 to 65 years; the felony counts each have a 20 to 40 year range; the confinement and attempted arson each have a six to 20 year range and the thefts each have a six month to three year range.

"Realistically, I think the basic penalty for the murder is the primary (charge)," Kern said. "For the two (murder charges) the minimum is 45 years and the maximum is 130 years."

Kern said that even though Yin has four counts of murder filed against him — two different types — he can be charged with only two counts, one type for each sister. Kern explained the first charge, murder, simply means one person killed another. Yet, he said the other charge, murder while attempting to commit burglary or robbery, means a person was killed in the course of another felony.

"It doesn't matter whether you intended to kill someone or not; you're liable for murder regardless," said Kern.

Yin appeared before a magistrate at the county jail Wednesday afternoon where he was informed of the possibility of a death sentence.

"Certainly we're considering that," Kern said Wednesday. "We'll have to look at the circumstances and the nature of the offense."

Court documents released Monday offered a possible motive for the murders. According to the affidavit, Yin told police on Aug. 8 that he killed the Woo sisters after almost being struck by a car Hyo Kyung was driving.

According to court documents, Yin followed Hyo Kyung back to a campus apartment following the alleged near collision, removed a hammer from his backpack, and struck her in the head with it repeatedly. He also stabbed her throat with a kitchen knife, according to the affidavit.

The document said Yin then moved Hyo Kyung's body to a bedroom and began cleaning up when Yeunkyung entered the apartment. He reportedly recognized Yeunkyung and then began striking her with the hammer as well.

Yin told officers Yeunkyung asked him why he was doing this and he said he "had no choice."

After beating her with the hammer, Yin stabbed Yeunkyung in the throat with the knife as well.

Before he left the Purdue Village apartment, he turned on all the burners on the stove in an attempt to "conceal the odor," according to the affidavit.

When Yin was questioned as to whether he was trying to start a fire he "nodded his head affirmatively," the court documents said.

Yin reportedly admitted to police that he took Yeunkyung's wallet from her backpack and took a set of keys from Hyo Kyung because he "liked the Acura symbol on the key chain."

After leaving the apartment, Yin apparently returned to his home to get his vehicle, went to the Lafayette Target to buy new clothes and went to Wal-Mart to buy a new hammer.

According to the affidavit, Yin then drove to the Wabash River, threw his bloody clothes and hammer into it and then went to a fast food restaurant to get dinner for himself and his wife, Jun Ke.

Additional court documents filed Aug. 10 state that Yin logged onto computers in the Math Building in the early morning hours of Aug. 3. Apparently he logged onto one computer under his name and another under Yeunkyung's alias.

The same documents say Yin and his wife left later that day for Chicago and upon their arrival that same evening Yin was questioned about his knowledge of using Yeunkyung's computer account and her murder. According to the court records, he denied knowledge of the murders at that time.

On Aug. 5, Yin and Jun Ke traveled to Oklahoma State University to visit a friend of Yin's and court documents say Yin admitted to Jun Ke during the car ride that he killed the women. He apparently also asked for his wife's forgiveness and indicated he didn't want to face the victims' parents.

According to reports, Jun Ke urged Yin to turn himself in but he apparently said he didn't want to spend the rest of his life in prison.

Upon the couple's arrival at Oklahoma State, Jun Ke contacted the university's police about Yin's confession. Later that day, preliminary charges were filed and a warrant was obtained for his arrest.

On the evening of Aug. 7, Yin was arrested while attempting to enter Canada near Amherst, N.Y. On Aug. 8, Yin waved extradition and Purdue Police Chief Linda Stump and detective Steve Dietrich flew to New York to take him into custody.

Yin is now being held without bond in Tippecanoe County Jail. On Wednesday, he was appointed a public defender, Kevin O'Reilly, and the omnibus date for the trial is set for 9 a.m. Sept. 28. The plea cut-off date is Nov. 23.

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