Police Considering Not Applying Murder Charges to Taxi Driver Who Blocked Ambulance

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] The police are considering not applying murder charges against a taxi driver who blocked an ambulance transporting an emergency patient to the hospital and caused an accident.

According to the police on the 21st, the Gangdong Police Station in Seoul is coordinating with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and the investigation review officers, deciding not to apply murder charges among the various charges against taxi driver Choi Mo (32).

Earlier, on the afternoon of June 8 last year, Choi deliberately caused a collision with an ambulance carrying an emergency patient on a road in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, and obstructed its operation for about 10 minutes, saying, "If the patient dies, I will take responsibility."

According to the patient's family, due to Choi's actions, a 79-year-old stage 4 lung cancer patient in the ambulance missed the opportunity to be admitted to a negative pressure isolation room, and their condition worsened, resulting in death on the day of the accident. The patient's family filed a complaint against Choi in July last year on nine charges including murder, attempted murder, and negligent homicide and injury.

The police have been reviewing the possibility of applying murder charges, but based on the medical opinion from the Korean Medical Association and other evidence, it is understood that they judged it difficult to conclude that Choi had the intent to cause the patient's death.

Meanwhile, separately from this case, Choi was also arrested and prosecuted on charges of special property damage, obstruction of business, and fraud for collecting settlement money totaling about 21.5 million won over five years from 2015 by using minor collisions as a pretext while driving charter buses, company taxis, and trucks. He was sentenced to 1 year and 10 months in prison in the appellate trial last month.