Man Nodding Off in Front of Gukbap... Suddenly Arrested After Leaving Restaurant

Unstable Vehicle Behavior Detected Including Central Line Violation
"Drinking Until Dawn"... Arrested After Breathalyzer Test

A man in his 40s who visited a restaurant after driving under the influence during the morning hours was caught thanks to the sharp eyes of a police officer who came for breakfast.

A customer dozing off in front of a bowl of gukbap (left) and a group of police officers having a meal after an overnight shift (center). [Image source=Captured from the National Police Agency YouTube]

On the 23rd, a video titled "Why the police are chasing me just because I ate gukbap" was uploaded on the National Police Agency's YouTube channel. The video introduced an incident where Sergeant Kim Seongsu of the Uijeongbu Police Station Songsan Precinct stopped by a restaurant in Yonghyeon-dong, Uijeongbu City, around 7 a.m. on the 28th of last month to have breakfast with a fellow officer after finishing a night shift and heading home.

While eating, Officer Kim noticed something suspicious about a man in his 40s, Mr. A, sitting at the next table. Although the ordered gukbap was placed on the table, the man had his head down and appeared to be dozing off for about five minutes. After dozing for a while, Mr. A suddenly stood up, finished his meal, left the restaurant ahead of Officer Kim and his group, and immediately drove off in a sports utility vehicle (SUV). However, seeing the unstable driving, including crossing the center line, Sergeant Kim instinctively suspected drunk driving and immediately chased the vehicle, instructing the driver to pull over to the roadside.

In plain clothes, Sergeant Kim showed his police ID to Mr. A and informed him that he needed to investigate whether he was driving under the influence. Officer Kim Seongchan, a colleague from the Songsan Precinct, promptly requested a patrol car to the scene and asked for a breathalyzer test for Mr. A. Two minutes later, the patrol car arrived and conducted the test, which showed Mr. A's blood alcohol concentration was 0.053%, corresponding to a license suspension level. The investigation revealed that Mr. A had been drinking with acquaintances until after 4 a.m. that day and had driven approximately 32 km from Namyangju City, Gyeonggi Province, to Uijeongbu while intoxicated.

Sergeant Kim said, "I thought it was strange that he was dozing off at that time, and when I saw him crossing the center line, I suspected drunk driving and decided to follow him." He added, "Mr. A confessed at the scene that he had been drinking with acquaintances. Fortunately, we were able to prevent a potential traffic accident that could have occurred during drunk driving." He also urged people to always call a designated driver after drinking.