"Forced to March, Used Crutches"… Additional Exposure Post by 'Eolcharyeo' Company Commander Emerges

Regarding the Death of a Trainee in the Army 12th Division
Additional Exposure by Company Commander... "Made Him Use Crutches"
"Usually Forced to Jog with Full Gear"

Regarding the incident in which a recruit of the Army's 12th Division died while undergoing military discipline training (Eolcharyeo), an allegation has emerged that the detained company commander had repeatedly conducted training that violated regulations in the past.

A company commander suspected of conducting military discipline training (physical punishment) in violation of regulations related to the death of a recruit in the Army's 12th Division appeared for a pre-trial detention hearing and is seen leaving the court.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 25th, a post by A, who identified himself as a former recruit of the 12th Division, was uploaded on the military personnel community 'The Camp.' A said, "When I was a recruit, the company commander demanded a medical opinion from the military doctor for recruits who said they were sick before a march," adding, "If they didn’t have the medical opinion, they were sent back and eventually forced to participate in the training."

A explained, "Just 10 minutes after the march started, a fellow recruit kept complaining about knee pain and said he couldn’t walk, but the company commander forced him to keep walking," and "As a result, that recruit had to use crutches and couldn’t even attend the graduation ceremony." He continued, "He also made recruits run with full combat gear because the barracks cleaning was unsatisfactory." According to Army training regulations, only walking is allowed when in full combat gear. If this allegation is true, the company commander violated basic Army training regulations.

A said, "He gathered us on the parade ground in full combat gear and, because the barracks cleaning wasn’t done properly, made us run up from the parade ground to the third-floor barracks while carrying our gear," explaining the situation at the time, "The individual combat training ground has a slope, and the commander shouted at those who fell behind, forcing them to climb, causing more than four people to vomit while holding onto the guardrails." He added, "It seems like what was going to explode finally did. I want the company commander to be severely punished."

Earlier, around 5:20 p.m. on the 23rd, the deceased collapsed while receiving military discipline training with five other recruits at the 12th Division training center in Inje, Gangwon Province. He was taken to the hospital but passed away two days later. It is known that the company commander and the deputy company commander ordered the recruits to run and sprint in full combat gear. Both were detained on the 21st of this month, about a month after the incident. The company commander reportedly argued that he did not personally order the full combat gear training.