A 29-year-old Korean-American student at Columbia University’s College of Dental Medicine has
A 29-year-old Korean-American student at Columbia University’s College of Dental Medicine has been missing for two weeks. Jiwon Lee was last seen in her apartment on West 98th Street at around 8:30 p.m. and the NYPD says her last phone call was made in Washington Heights.
The case has seized the attention of the Korean community in New York, and Lee’s family has spearheaded efforts to search for her both online and offline. Korean publications have reported extensively on the case, and members of the Korean community have rolled up their sleeves to find her.
There is widespread speculation about whether Lee was suffering from depression and there have been reports about a suicide note. But her brother, Matthew Lee, who also lives in New York, said he shares a close bond with his sister and he noted her “outgoing and gregarious personality.”
The Korea Times reported that she was the president of the American Student Dental Student Association and is currently in her fourth year at Columbia’s dental school. They also listed her recent achievements, including her work as an intern at NPR and as an AmeriCorps teacher at middle schools in New York.
In2 Church, a Korean church in Manhattan, has distributed missing-person flyers to the public around Manhattan and Brooklyn.
“All members of my church joined forces to find her. We are offering prayers for her safe return,” Rev. Seyoung Lee said.
Lee’s friend, Christina Simon, created a Facebook page,”Jiwon Lee – Missing Person,” with photos and detailed descriptions of her appearance. The webpage received more than 4,000 likes by April 14. The page describes her as 5 feet 2 inches tall, weighing 120 pounds, with black hair and black eyes.
Matthew Lee opened a fundraising site on GoFundMe on April 6 to hire a private detective and collected more than $83,000 in eight days.
Her family is not giving up the search.”We are so grateful to the Korean community for helping us find her. Although my parents are having a difficult time, we all believe that she will come back safe and sound,” Matthew Lee said in an interview with Korea Daily.
He mentioned that with everyone’s support he hired a detective who worked at the NYPD for a long time. “Thanks to everyone who donated to help find my sister,” he added.
According to the NYPD, Jiwon Lee has been missing since she left her apartment at 98th Street on April 8. Anyone with information about Jiwon Lee is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-8477.