Photographer poisons model and takes photos of her dying

GEUMCHEON-GU, SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – DECEMBER 14, 1982 24-year-old Kim Kyung-hee (김경희) was murdered by South Korean photographer Lee Dong-shik (이동식), who lured her to Mount Hoamsan in Seoul under the pretense of a paid photography session. There, he gave her a capsule containing potassium cyanide and subsequently photographed her as she died.

Lee, who was 42 years old at the time of the murder, met Kim at the barbershop where she worked. He offered her an opportunity to pose as a model and promised to pay her for the photo session. On December 14, 1982, he took her to a secluded location and gave her a capsule presented as cold medicine. While the woman was dying from poisoning, he took a total of 21 photographs documenting her final moments. He subsequently covered her body with dry leaves.

Kim Kyung-hee’s naked body was discovered on January 11, 1983, by children playing on the slope of Mount Hoamsan. An autopsy confirmed cyanide poisoning. During a later search of Lee’s residence, police seized photographs and film materials hidden behind a wall. Their analysis helped establish that the woman was still alive while the photographs were being taken and disproved his claim that she had committed suicide.

Investigators also examined a possible connection between Lee Dong-shik and the earlier disappearance of his former wife, Bang Ok-su (방옥수). However, his involvement in any other possible murders was never established. Lee Dong-shik was sentenced to death for the murder of Kim Kyung-hee and was executed by hanging on May 27, 1986.