Knife attacks reported in Daegu and Pocheon? Police say "It's fake news"

Imitation of Notice Format Including Incident Overview and Eyewitness Accounts
Police: "Waste of Investigative Resources... Concerns Over Public Harm"

A post claiming that a stabbing incident occurred at the Pocheon Bus Terminal in Gyeonggi Province and at a PC bang in Daegu rapidly spread online, but it has been revealed to be false.

On the morning of the 3rd, a post claiming that a stabbing incident occurred at a PC room in Daegu was made on an online community, but it was revealed to be untrue.
[Photo by Daegu Police Agency]

On the 4th, multiple posts titled "Weapon rampage and arson incident at Pocheon Naeson-myeon General Bus Terminal" and "Daegu PC bang stabbing incident" were posted one after another on various online communities and social networking services (SNS). All of these are 'fake news' containing false information.

Pocheon 'Naeson-myeon' General Bus Terminal Weapon Rampage and Arson Incident? "Fake News"

This photo is not directly related to the content of the article.

The 'Pocheon weapon rampage and arson incident' circulated with details stating that "at 11:22 a.m. on the 4th, a drunken man in his 40s threatened passersby at the Pocheon Naeson-myeon General Bus Terminal, resulting in 13 seriously injured, 16 minor injuries, 7 unconscious, totaling 36 victims, and 12 buses inside the terminal were completely burned."

The incident overview was written in detail, and the date and content were composed to imitate the message format used by authorities, increasing its credibility.

However, the fire department and police authorities stated that no reports related to this have been received.

Furthermore, there is no administrative district named Naeson-myeon in Pocheon City, and it was confirmed that the similarly named Naechon-myeon does not have an intercity bus terminal.

The Gyeonggi Northern Fire and Disaster Headquarters emphasized, "In a situation where anxiety is high due to violent incidents, spreading or disseminating fake news can waste police investigative resources and inevitably lead to public harm."

Daegu PC Bang Stabbing Incident Also Detailed but Confirmed as "Fake News"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Fake news also spread claiming a stabbing incident occurred in Daegu Metropolitan City.

It stated that around 3 a.m. on the 3rd, at a PC bang in Daegu, a customer and a part-time employee had an argument, during which the customer injured the employee with a knife he was carrying and fled.

The author added that the injured part-time employee received emergency treatment and was transferred to a hospital, surviving, and that the suspect is currently being searched for.

Along with this, photos were posted showing bloodstains on the floor next to a door engraved with the PC bang sign and images of paramedics and police officers responding on a late-night city road.

However, the Daegu Police Agency announced through a related notice that this was confirmed to be untrue.

"Threatening Posts and Fake News Will Be Severely Punished"

Yoon Hee-geun, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, is delivering a public statement regarding the stabbing incident on the afternoon of the 4th at the National Police Agency in Seodaemun-gu. Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

The police plan to track down and severely punish those who post threatening announcements imitating weapon rampage crimes or write fake news on online communities.

Yoon Hee-geun, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, stated in an emergency public statement on the 4th, "We will respond strongly without exception to irresponsible and reckless cyber announcements of heinous crimes and baseless fake news," adding, "We will concentrate all investigative capabilities to quickly identify and arrest the authors and punish them as severely as the law allows."

On the 21st of last month, Cho Sun (33) committed a random weapon rampage with a stolen weapon near Exit 4 of Sillim Station in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, killing one man in his 20s and injuring three men in their 30s.

Since then, online posts threatening to commit similar crimes have been pouring in. Since the 21st of last month, there have been at least 25 posts warning of weapon rampages or similar incidents that the police have either arrested the authors of or are tracking. Among these, two authors have been arrested, and the rest are under investigation.