A South Korean teenager who went missing in Turkey near the Syrian border had images of what appears to be Islamic State (IS) militants on his home computer, police said Monday, amid suspicions he may have joined the group.
The 18-year-old, identified only by his surname, Kim, went missing on Jan. 10 during a trip to the southern Turkish town of Kilis and was last seen leaving a hotel.
The Turkish newspaper Milliyet reported earlier that he had exchanged emails with the Islamic State group and probably crossed into Syria to join them.
But Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said at the weekend it has found no hard evidence that Kim entered Syria or joined the group.
South Korean police investigating his disappearance searched the youth’s room in Seoul and checked his personal computer.
“There were some photos of gun-toting militants carrying what look like IS flags, in his computer,” a Seoul police detective assigned to the case said on condition of anonymity.
Police are looking to see if Kim accessed any IS-linked websites and are analyzing e-mail exchanges with a Turkish friend he met online known as “Hassan,” the detective said.
Kim’s parents allowed him to travel to Turkey, along with a family friend, after he pleaded for the chance to meet with Hassan in person.
At home, Kim spent most of his time playing computer games after dropping out of school a few years ago, Dong-A Ilbo and other major newspapers reported.
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source : japan times
Monday
19 January 2015
7:49:38 AM
665660
A South Korean teenager who went missing in Turkey near the Syrian border had images of what appears to be Islamic State (IS) militants on his home computer, police said Monday, amid suspicions he may have joined the group.