President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with Korean nationals in Brussels on Tuedsay. (Yonhap) President Lee Jae-myung said Wednesday that South Korea will continue to pursue crimes committed against its citizens overseas, following the arrest of a former Filipino police officer suspected of masterminding the 2016 kidnapping and murder of Korean businessman Jee Ick-joo.“No matter where in the world a crime is committed against our people, we will track it to the end and ensure that those responsible face appropriate consequences,” Lee wrote in a Facebook post titled “There are no borders when it comes to the lives and safety of our citizens.”“I offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved family, who have spent more than 10 years in pain and waiting, hoping earnestly for the truth of the case to be revealed,” Lee said.The president said Jee’s family had sought progress in the investigation during his visit to the Philippines in March, while members of the Korean community there also called for the case to be resolved.“Although belated, I am relieved to be able to share the news of the suspect’s arrest,” Lee said.Lee credited close cooperation among the Korean Embassy in the Philippines, the Korean Desk within the Philippine police department and Philippine police authorities for the arrest.“I express my gratitude to everyone who worked for a long time to resolve this case,” he said.He added that protecting the lives and safety of citizens is “the most basic duty of the state,” pledging that the government will do everything possible to help Koreans overseas live more safely.A day earlier, Lee also wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “Thank you to the police, the National Intelligence Service and the Foreign Ministry for their hard work. I also thank the Philippine authorities for their efforts.”According to South Korea’s Foreign Ministry, Rafael Dumlao, a former team leader at the Philippine National Police’s Anti-Illegal Drugs Group and the main culprit in Jee’s murder case, was arrested by Philippine police in Manila on Tuesday after about one year and nine months on the run.Dumlao was acquitted in a lower court ruling in 2023, but an appeals court in 2024 sentenced him to life imprisonment without parole. He fled before the sentence could be enforced, taking advantage of a delay in the issuance of an arrest warrant by the appellate court.The case has been regarded as one of the most high-profile violent crimes targeting Koreans in the Philippines and has long remained a key issue between Seoul and Manila.During a meeting with Korean residents while on a state visit to the Philippines in March, Lee said he had asked Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to swiftly apprehend the suspect.“I asked that the culprit be caught quickly, and President Marcos said he would do his best,” Lee said at the time. “South Korea is also considering putting its resources into the arrest.”