The San Benito County Sheriff’s Office announced a guilty conviction for Sang Ji in the murder of his late wife Yoon Ji.
A jury Thursday convicted Ji of the murder. In January, Jung Choi accepted a plea deal for voluntary manslaughter in the case.
A homicide conviction calls for 25 years to life in prison, while Choi will serve up to 11 years including time already spent in the county jail.
According to a press release from Friday:
On March 19, 2020, a jury found 50-year-old Sang Ji of Hollister guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Ji’s wife, Yoon “Clara” Ji.
Capt. Eric Taylor of the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office was the Investigating Officer, and Deputy District Attorney Joel Buckingham prosecuted the case.
On Jan. 24, 2020, Jung Choi pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter. Ji and Choi were arrested in December 2017, four days after one of Ji’s daughters filed a missing person’s report for their mother. The daughter contacted the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office after becoming suspicious of Ji’s claim that his wife had gone to South Korea to care for her ailing mother.
After a series of search warrants and interviews, investigators discovered Yoon Ji’s body buried in a ravine on the 2300 block of Salinas Grade Road near San Juan Bautista on Dec. 20, 2017.
The San Benito County Sheriff’s Office and San Benito County District Attorney’s Office would like to thank the jury for its time, service, and dedication in this complex case. In addition, credit belongs to many agencies and individuals including Santa Clara County Medical Examiner’s Office, the FBI Evidence Team, California Office of Emergency Services Human Remains Team, Northern California Regional Intelligence Center, and California DOJ Laboratories as they were all integral in the prosecution of this case.
Yoon “Clara” Ji was a beloved mother, and beloved member of our community her loss is felt daily.
