A Shincheonji follower jumped to her death in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province, after a quarrel with her husband about her religion, police said Wednesday.
It happened two weeks after another Shincheonji believer killed herself in Ulsan by jumping from her seventh-floor apartment after facing domestic violence that began with her husband's disapproval of her religion.
While police are investigating what drove the two to kill themselves, Shincheonji ― a mysterious cult at the center of nationwide criticism for its members' role in spreading coronavirus ― claims they have fallen victim to the “public frame vilifying the religion.”
The latest case happened Tuesday night at an 11-story apartment building in Jeongeup. The husband told police his wife jumped to her death from the apartment balcony shortly after they clashed over Shincheonji. She had two children, aged seven and five. Police found no suicide note or anything that could be seen as a will at her home.
The husband said he learned seven or eight years ago that his wife was a Shincheonji believer and they had clashed frequently over the issue. His disapproval of Shincheonji intensified with the coronavirus epidemic.
His wife tested negative for the virus and was in self-isolation, as requested by health authorities, he said.