Threatening Message Saying "Kill the Children" Posted in Parent Group Chat... Perpetrator is a High School Student

A teenage high school student who posted threatening messages saying he would kill children in a KakaoTalk group chat for parents was apprehended by the police.

The Incheon Western Police Station announced on the 12th that they have arrested and are investigating a boy identified as A on charges of intimidation. A is suspected of posting a threatening message in a KakaoTalk group chat for parents of an elementary school in Seo-gu, Incheon, around 9:35 a.m. the previous day, stating, "I will kill all the children when they go to and from school."

At the time, he posted a message saying, "I will kill all the children at the coordinates of ○○ Elementary School," along with a photo of his hand holding a car steering wheel. This group chat, where parent volunteers who assist children with commuting to and from school gather, is known to be an open chat room that anyone can enter freely without a password.

Threatening Message Posted in Parents' KakaoTalk Group Chat [Yonhap News]

On the morning of the 11th, a parent reported to 112 that a threatening message had been posted in the KakaoTalk chat room, and the police urgently arrested A in Chungnam at around 8:15 p.m. that day. Although A's home address is in Incheon, it was confirmed that he attends school in Chungnam.

During the police investigation, A reportedly stated that he posted the message as a joke. A police official said, "We are considering applying additional charges such as attempted murder or obstruction of official duties by deception against A," and added, "The specific motive and circumstances of the crime will be confirmed through further investigation."