11-Year-Old Child Who Rode a Bicycle with the Initially Injured Child
Fell in Shock While Chasing the Vehicle, "Can't Sleep Thinking About That Moment"
An on-site verification of the traffic accident that occurred in a child protection zone near an elementary school in Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, was additionally conducted on the 9th. / Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] It has been revealed that there is one more victim in the child protection zone (school zone) traffic accident that occurred in Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, in addition to the previously reported 9-year-old child.
MBC's 'True Story Exploration Team' reported on the 10th that during the 'Gyeongju School Zone Accident' on the 25th of last month, when an SUV collided with A (9), who was riding a bicycle in a school zone in Gyeongju, B (11), who was also riding a bicycle with A, was chased by the same vehicle.
According to new closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage released in the broadcast, B was startled and fell after seeing the SUV rushing toward him. The driver did not stop the chase and after running about 300 meters, collided with A's bicycle.
In the broadcast, B said, "The car came at me, so I was startled and fell," and expressed his feelings, saying, "I can't sleep well because I keep thinking about that day."
An eyewitness to the accident explained the situation, saying, "The SUV driver did not check the child's condition and pressured them with questions like 'Why did you run away?' and 'Why did you hit my child?'"
Professor Oh Yoon-sung of Soonchunhyang University’s Department of Police Administration, who watched the footage, said, "It is similar to a 'fox hunt,'" and added, "It appears to be a combination of hunting and retaliatory driving."
Meanwhile, the accident occurred around 1:40 p.m. on the 25th of last month near an elementary school in Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju, when an SUV chased and collided with A’s bicycle. A was injured in the leg and received treatment at a hospital.
At the time, A’s family claimed that "A had a quarrel with the driver's child at the playground, and the driver chased A, saying that A did not apologize, and intentionally caused the accident."
Following the controversy over the intentional nature of the accident, the Gyeongju Police formed a joint investigation team consisting of the Traffic Crime Investigation Team and the Criminal Investigation Team on the 27th of last month, two days after the accident, and began an investigation.
The police and the National Forensic Service (NFS) summoned the driver on the 9th to recreate the accident scene and began a detailed analysis using equipment. The police plan to review whether to summon additional witnesses and finalize the applicable laws after receiving the NFS analysis results.
Meanwhile, it is reported that the SUV driver is currently denying any intentionality in the incident.
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