Itaewon Tragedy Bereaved Families Condemn Special Investigation Unit... "Top Officials Must Be Investigated"

Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Seoul City, and Police Agency
"Affiliated Organizations Have Duty to Supervise Disaster Prevention and Preparedness"

The "Itaewon Disaster Bereaved Families Association" and the "Itaewon Disaster Citizens' Countermeasures Meeting Subcommittee for Truth Investigation Citizen Participation" are holding a press conference at 11 a.m. on the 11th in front of the Mapo Office of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. Photo by Taewon Choi skking@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Taewon] The Itaewon Disaster Bereaved Families Association (Bereaved Families Association) condemned the investigation by the Police Agency’s Special Investigation Headquarters (Special Investigation HQ) and called for an investigation into the ‘upper echelons.’

The Bereaved Families Association and the Truth-Finding Citizens Participation Committee under the Itaewon Disaster Citizens’ Countermeasures Meeting (Truth-Finding Committee) held a press conference at 11 a.m. on the 11th in front of the Special Investigation HQ located at the Mapo Office of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, making these demands.

They criticized the Special Investigation HQ’s investigation as a ‘scapegoating’ effort to avoid holding the upper echelons accountable. Their position is that the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Seoul City, and the Police Agency must establish their own plans to prevent disasters and, at the same time, as superior institutions, manage and supervise their subordinate organizations’ disaster prevention and preparedness.

The Special Investigation HQ has so far referred ten major suspects, including former Yongsan Police Station Chief Lee Im-jae and Yongsan District Mayor Park Hee-young, to the prosecution on charges such as professional negligence resulting in death and injury. However, summons investigations of Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, and Police Chief Yoon Hee-geun have not been conducted.

Choi Jong-yeon, Vice Chair of the Labor Committee of the Lawyers for a Democratic Society, said at the press conference, “The death toll, including those who took their own lives, is 159. According to the Disaster and Safety Act, this clearly qualifies as a case with significant casualties and widespread impact, requiring the provincial governor to take emergency measures,” adding, “The minister arbitrarily interpreted the golden time, and now the Special Investigation HQ is arbitrarily interpreting the scope of the damage,” urging a thorough investigation.

The necessity of investigating Police Chief Yoon, who is reportedly excluded from the investigation, was also raised. Prevention of the Itaewon disaster and matters related to public safety, traffic, and security are defined as autonomous police duties and are subject to the command and supervision of the provincial autonomous police committees. For this reason, the Special Investigation HQ concluded that it is difficult to include Chief Yoon in the investigation.

The association argued that, as the overall head of the police, Chief Yoon also has an obligation to take corrective measures. Lee Chang-min, Executive Director of the Police Reform Network, criticized, “It is as if Chief Yoon is unrelated and separate from autonomous affairs. Are the top officials with comprehensive command authority completely free from criminal responsibility?” and added, “I have never heard or seen such legal reasoning,” expressing strong criticism.