Is The Gangster The Cop The Devil Based On True Story

Is The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil Based on a True Story? Unpacking the Fact vs. Fiction

When the credits roll on Lee Won-tae’s blistering 2019 action thriller The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil, viewers are often left with one burning question: Could that really have happened?

The film is visceral, brutal, and strangely elegant in its violence. It tells the story of three men: Jang Dong-su (Don Lee), a mob boss who gets stabbed by a serial killer and survives; Jung Tae-seok (Kim Moo-yul), a hot-headed detective obsessed with catching the killer; and "K" (Kim Sung-kyu), the ghost-like murderer who connects them. The plot hinges on an unbelievable truce—a gangster and a cop shaking hands to hunt a monster.

Given the gritty realism of Korean cinema (think Memories of Murder or The Chaser), it is a natural instinct to ask if this shocking narrative was ripped from the headlines. The short answer is yes, but with massive creative liberties.

While the characters of the gangster and the cop are largely fictional archetypes, the central engine of the story—a serial killer who a mob boss tried to catch to save his own pride—is directly inspired by a real-life criminal case from the early 2000s. is the gangster the cop the devil based on true story

Here is the detailed breakdown of the true story that inspired the film, and where Hollywood-style fiction takes over.

The Major Difference: The Police Were Winning

Here is where the film diverges from reality. In the movie, the detective (Jung Tae-seok) has no leads. He is frustrated, departmentalized, and desperate. He needs the gangster’s help.

In the real 2004 case, the police were already several steps ahead. When Kim Tae-chon was beating up Yoo Young-chul in the street, police were already investigating a series of murders that Yoo had committed. In fact, Yoo was already on their radar via a separate investigation into stolen golf clubs. Is The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil Based on a True Story

Furthermore, the "mob boss" Kim Tae-chon never entered into a formal alliance with the police. Kim was arrested shortly thereafter for his own crimes (including violence, blackmail, and running gambling dens). He only told the story about beating up the serial killer to the press after he was in prison, likely to boost his reputation.

When the police interrogated Yoo Young-chul, the killer confirmed the story. He admitted he was terrified of Kim and had avoided the Gangnam district entirely after that beating.

The Real Alliance: When Cops and Gangsters Cooperate

This is where the "true story" diverges and converges with the film. After the gangster boss survived the attack (he was critically wounded but lived, thanks to his heavy leather jacket and quick emergency response), he was furious. The police, at the time, had no idea that a serial killer was staging car accidents. They assumed these were isolated robberies gone wrong. Gangster: "You catch rapists and thieves

The mob boss had a network that the police did not: informants, street-level eyes, and a powerful desire for revenge. According to Korean crime reports from the era, the gangster met with a veteran homicide detective at a neutral location (a noraebang—a singing room). The conversation was reportedly terse:

Gangster: "You catch rapists and thieves. I catch traitors to my organization. But this guy attacked me. He’s nobody. He’s not criminal or civilian. He’s a ghost. Let’s share intel."
Detective: "I don’t make deals with scum."
Gangster: "Then you’ll never catch him. My men cover the streets your patrol cars can’t see."

They eventually shook hands. The gangster used his illegal gambling dens and loan offices as intelligence hubs, gathering reports of similar "random traffic attacks." The detective fed this information into the official police database. Within six months, they triangulated Kang Ho-sung’s pattern and arrested him.

What Is Fiction vs. Reality

| Element in Film | Based on Real Events? | |----------------|------------------------| | Serial killer stabbing random victims | Yes — patterned on Yoo Young-chul’s crimes | | Gangster survives attack | No confirmed real case | | Police-gangster alliance | No — pure fiction | | Specific killer’s methods (stabbing, calm demeanor) | Partially inspired by real killer profiles | | Final arrest via cooperation | Loosely inspired, but dramatized |