‘The Raincoat Killer’: 3 Details From Netflix’s Serial Killer Docu-Series That Left Viewers Mind-boggled
Netflix and crime fans get their first taste of a gruesome South Korean serial killer in the docu-series, The Raincoat Killer: Chasing a Predator in Korea. In three episodes, viewers further understand the drastic effect murderer Yoo Young-chul had on Korean society, authorities, and citizens. The docu-series revealed details about the investigation never made public before. Specific details left viewers mind-boggled over its reality.
Yoo Young-chul is South Korea’s worst killer in the countries history who operated in the early 2000s. While media outlets gave backstory to the investigation and crimes, The Raincoat Killer showed certain aspects that stunned viewers.
Why was Yoo Young-chul called ‘The Raincoat Killer’?
Throughout the docu-series, there is never any mention of Yoo wearing a yellow raincoat to commit his murders. “When I first started it, the question of how the raincoat was incorporated into his murders was something on my mind,” said one viewer on Reddit. In episode 3, the reason why Yoo wore a raincoat was anti-climactic.
When police apprehended Yoo, there was a big media frenzy. The police were ready to take Yoo to where he buried the bodies, but reporters swarmed the precinct. To conceal his identity, a detective covered Yoo in a yellow raincoat, hat, and mask. The only photos of Yoo taken by the media are of him leaving the precinct in the coat. It led reporters to tag him as “The Raincoat Killer” when he never wore one to commit his murders.
Yoo Young-chul used a popular Korean side dish to conceal the smell of a rotting body
One detail revealed by Netflix’s The Raincoat Killer docu-series was how Yoo disposed of his victims. Fans on social media were stunned to learn the common item Yoo used to cover up the smell of a decaying body. One of the investigators revealed Yoo would add kimchi to the bag with the dismembered body parts.
The popular Korean food item can have a pungent and sour smell the longer it ferments. Yoo knew the smell of rotting flesh and body parts would raise suspicion. The docu-series revealed Yoo once got into a taxi with bags of dismembered body parts and kimchi. The smell revolted the taxi driver, and Yoo explained it was kimchi his mother gifted him. Yoo’s excuse was enough for the driver not to suspect anything.
The incompetance and curruption by the South Korean police revelead in ‘The Raincoat Killer’
One of the major takeaways viewers had from Netflix’s The Raincoat Killer was the lack of competence by authorities and their blatant inability to investigate properly. The investigators in the docu-series explained precincts did not coordinate with each other on cases at the time. Further into the investigation, investigators admitted to not following proper procedure and found Yoo by chance when a pimp noticed one of his workers was missing.
“It seems like the narrative is really trying to portray the Seoul police favorably while they basically admit to straight-up mishandling the case several times,” said one viewer on Reddit. Viewers were dismayed at the police’s incompetence during Yoo’s interrogation. While in custody, one detective left the room, unaware his comrade followed him. Seeing an opportunity, Yoo walked out of the precinct barefoot and did not raise suspicion.
The police never thought to check if Yoo went home and instead conducted random searches. “It seemed like the police weren’t asking the questions or following the protocol they needed to solve the case,” said one Redditor. The police arrested Yoo after stumbling upon him on the street. What left viewers disgruntled was the investors’ admittance to using excessive force and falsifying records.
One of the chief investigators admitted to falsifying records to make it seem that Yoo was not the suspect after successfully escaping custody. The same investigator used physical persuasion to gain power over Yoo and get a confession. The detail in the docu-series angered viewers.
