A South Korean man alleged to have illegally entered the United States by assuming the identity of the brother he killed in Bellevue 30 years ago will appear in U.S. District Court next month on federal weapons charges.
Junne Kyoo Koh shot and killed his brother, Sang, while the 16-year-old Bellevue teen slept in his family’s home on Dec. 12, 1984. Following his second-degree murder conviction, Koh was imprisoned for eight years before being deported back to South Korea in 1992.
According to charging documents filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Seattle, Koh, 51, returned to the United States last year by assuming his dead brother’s identity, later obtaining a Washington ID card also under Sang Koh’s name after flying from Florida to the Seattle area. Koh was also wanted by the Canada Border Services Agency for allegedly setting up residency in Vancouver, British Columbia, which he was prohibited from doing due to his murder conviction and felon status.
Koh contacted Bellevue Police last June, several months after returning to his family’s residence on the 1300 block of 165th Avenue Northeast and finding them missing, according to court documents, alleging his neighbor may have been behind their disappearance.
When Koh threatened to shoot the neighbor if he was right about his family’s disappearance, police seized a handgun next to a makeshift bed he’d set up inside his family’s residence, and another from Koh’s Kirkland storage locker, documents state.
While investigating Koh’s missing persons report, Bellevue Police discovered the 1984 murder case in their records.
Koh replied to a police message telling him his family was safe with an email on July 14, stating he would not return for his firearms because he is not allowed to possess them nor live in the United States, admitting to using several fake identities, according to court documents.
He was arrested in Los Angeles on Aug. 6 — where police believe Koh had been seeking the whereabouts of his missing family — and extradited to Washington on a fugitive from justice warrant.
Koh is charged with one count each of felon in possession of a firearm, alien in possession of a firearm and illegal reentry after deportation. His initial appearance was Tuesday (March 24) where he was ordered to remain in custody. His preliminary examination is set for 1 p.m. April 7.
