Citizen Reports Suspect Walking on Street to Police Substation... Suspect Surrenders Peacefully
First 112 Call Registered as Traffic Accident
Police: "Received Report of Weapon Rampage, Suspect Had Already Left Building Upon Arrival"
On the afternoon of the 3rd, a 'random stabbing rampage' occurred at a downtown Bundang department store, leaving 14 people seriously injured. The perpetrator fled the building and was later caught by a nearby police substation after pedestrians who witnessed the incident reported it.
According to the police on the 4th, at around 5:56 PM the previous day, delivery worker Choi (22) drove a Morning passenger car onto the sidewalk in front of AK Department Store in Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province, deliberately hitting five pedestrians. After getting out of the car, Choi entered the AK Department Store and stabbed nine people with a weapon while moving between the 1st and 2nd floors. As of the morning of the 4th, two of the 14 victims are reported to be in critical condition.
◆ Arrest by police substation officers following pedestrian reports = The first 112 emergency call was received at 5:56 PM, immediately after Choi hit pedestrians with his vehicle. The second call came at 5:58 PM when Choi got out of the car and began wielding a weapon on the 2nd floor of the department store. While police were dispatched to the scene following the 112 command, Choi exited the building, discarded the weapon in a roadside flowerbed, and walked away calmly. About nine minutes after the first 112 call, at around 6:05 PM, two citizens who spotted Choi walking toward the Seohyeon Police Substation in Bundang reported this to the substation. One police officer inside then went outside, twisted Choi’s arm, and subdued him. Choi was arrested without much resistance.
Initially, the police who responded to the 112 call and arrived at the AK Department Store did not locate the perpetrator, who had fled after discarding the weapon. The distance from AK Department Store to Seohyeon Police Substation is approximately 350 meters in a straight line, about a 5 to 6-minute walk. A Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency official explained, "The first report was received as a traffic accident, and the police arrived at the scene at 6:02 PM, just four minutes after the second report of the stabbing rampage. At the time of the report or police arrival, Choi had already left the building."
◆ Psychiatric treatment... weapon purchased at a large supermarket = After Choi’s arrest, the Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency formed a dedicated investigation team of 63 members. Investigations revealed that Choi lives with his parents in Bundang. Police found that Choi suffers from schizoid personality disorder and had dropped out of high school. During questioning, Choi stated, "A specific group is stalking, harassing, and trying to kill me," and "They are watching all aspects of my private life." Two weapons were used in the attack, both purchased the day before at a nearby large supermarket. A preliminary drug test on Choi was negative, and he was not under the influence of alcohol. Police believe the crime was committed due to delusional paranoia and other mental illnesses. They plan to apply for an arrest warrant after further questioning Choi about the circumstances and motives of the crime.
◆ Series of online posts predicting copycat crimes = Following this incident, posts predicting copycat crimes continued to appear online. At around 6:42 PM the previous day, a message was posted on Telegram stating, "I will stab people near Ori Station between 6 PM and 10 PM on Friday (the 4th)." At 7:02 PM, an online community, DC Inside, saw a post saying, "I will kill 20 people at Jamsil Station tomorrow morning (the 4th)," and at 11 PM that day, another post appeared stating, "I plan to stab people at Hanti Station at 10 PM on Friday." The police investigated the areas around Jamsil and Hanti Stations after receiving reports of these threats but found no evidence of criminal activity. As of the 4th, the posts have been deleted. Police Chief Yoon Hee-geun stated during a nationwide video conference with city and provincial police chiefs the previous day that, unlike crimes motivated by personal grudges, random attacks affect unspecified many victims and are essentially acts of terrorism. He instructed to strengthen patrols especially in crowded places.
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