'Sarin Yego' Spreading on SNS and Communities
Police Prepare for Worst-Case Scenario and Track Author
Experts: "Pre-announcement Posts Should Be Strictly Punished as Murder Preparation Crime"
On the 3rd, a stabbing rampage occurred near Seohyeon Station in Bundang, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, and posts threatening to commit similar crimes have been continuously uploaded online, spreading fear among citizens. The police have begun search operations for those who posted the messages. There is a growing call that acts provoking public anxiety by posting threatening messages must not be tolerated.
After the Seohyeon Station Incident... At Least 12 'Murder Threat' Posts Uploaded
On the afternoon of the 3rd, police SWAT team members were deployed to the scene near Seohyeon Station in Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province, where a random stabbing incident occurred. [Image source=Yonhap News]
On the night of the Seohyeon Station incident, numerous posts threatening random acts of violence were uploaded on popular social networking services (SNS) and online communities such as Telegram and DC Inside.
A DC Inside member posted at around 7:02 PM, "Tomorrow morning at Jamsil Station, I will kill 20 people. Do you really think you can stop me?" Although the post has since been deleted, several netizens who captured it have reported it to the police.
At around 6:42 PM the same day, a post appeared on the closed SNS 'Telegram' threatening to commit a crime near Ori Station in Bundang. The post specified the time frame as "Friday the 4th, between 6 PM and 10 PM near Ori Station."
The author of the post stated, "I no longer want to live, and I will kill as many people as possible, including the police," adding, "My ex-girlfriend lives nearby, so I hope someone you know dies." At around 7:09 PM, another post appeared with a photo of a weapon, saying, "Going to stab 20 people at Seohyeon Station on Friday, Han-nam area."
The repercussions continued the next day, the 4th. At 1:57 AM, a post appeared on an online community saying, "Look forward to Uijeongbu Station the day after tomorrow, you XX," along with a threat to wield a weapon at Busan Seomyeon Station.
Police Deploy Riot Teams and Track Post Authors
So far, the police have identified at least 12 threatening posts. Riot squads of about 25 officers each have been deployed to Ori Station and Seohyeon Station, which were mentioned in the murder threat posts. Additionally, two riot teams (about 10 officers) have been deployed to nearby Yatap Station and Jeongja Station. Patrol vehicles from all local police stations and substations have been concentrated in densely populated areas within their jurisdictions to conduct strategic patrols.
The Cyber Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency is currently tracking the authors of the reported threatening posts. All such posts have now been deleted. Furthermore, internet monitoring has been intensified to delete and block similar posts and to prevent the spread of crime videos that cause public anxiety.
Expert: "Authors of Murder Threat Posts Must Be Severely Punished for the Time Being"
On the morning of the 4th, police were deployed around Seohyeon Station in Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Previously, on the 21st of last month, near Exit 4 of Sillim Station in Seoul, a suspect named Chosun (33) went on a stabbing rampage, killing one person and injuring three others. Just 13 days later, at Seohyeon Station, a man named Choi (22) ran over five pedestrians near a department store and attacked nine people with a weapon.
Following these stabbing incidents, numerous threatening posts promising similar crimes have been detected online, increasing public anxiety.
There are calls to severely punish those who post murder threats to prevent social chaos. On the 4th, Professor Lee Su-jeong of the Department of Criminal Psychology at Kyonggi University stated on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' "For the time being, all authors of murder threat posts should be charged with attempted murder," adding, "Strict application of criminal law is necessary at this stage."
Professor Lee explained, "Attempted murder is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The fact that weapon photos are being posted specifically means they are effectively preparing to commit murder. We must severely punish this, and ignoring these posts is tantamount to leaving the danger unattended," expressing concern.
Meanwhile, an unannounced stabbing occurred in Daejeon. At 10:03 AM on the 4th, a man estimated to be in his 20s or 30s stabbed a teacher in his 40s at a high school in Daedeok-gu, Daejeon, and fled the scene. A police official said, "We are currently tracking the suspect who fled," adding, "The identity has not yet been confirmed."
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