(U-WIRE) PULLMAN, Wash.-Sung Koo Kim, the alleged Oregon underwear thief, is a Washington State University graduate.
Kim graduated from WSU with a degree in Genetics and Cellular Biology in 2001, according to the Oregonian.
The 30-year old Kim has been accused of stealing more than 3,400 pairs of women’s underwear at Oregon colleges since 2001.
Police caught Kim in his Tigard, Ore., home with the stash of underwear in May 2004. He was charged with theft in Benton, Multnomah, Yamhill and Washington counties in Oregon.
The underwear thefts were reported in at least six Oregon colleges, including Oregon State University, Linfield College, George Fox University, Concordia University and the University of Portland. The thefts were from laundry rooms in dormitories and apartment complexes.
Kim is also faced with child pornography charges in Washington County. Officers inspecting his home computer found child pornography, in addition to over 40,000 pornographic images of women being tortured and mutilated, according to court documents.
There were several reported cases of underwear theft during the time that Kim attended WSU, said Steve Hansen, chief of WSU Police Department. But those cases may not be significant to the Kim case.
Kim is in custody in Oregon. The first trials will take place in Yamhill county, Sassaman said.