Stayed Alone for 17 Days in a Remote Barracks 100m Away
No Roll Call, Discovered Only in the Afternoon...Suspected Negligence in Management
A man in his 20s, a 'malnyeon byeongjang' (senior corporal) with only a short time left before discharge, died after being punished by living alone in a remote accommodation for 17 days. The exact cause of this soldier's death has not been determined.
According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 1st, Yonhap News reported that Sergeant A (21) was found dead at a unit under the Defense Intelligence Command on November 11 last year. A was living alone in a separate place, not in the barracks, from October 26 of the same year as a form of disciplinary action for an incident that occurred during duty. This was to isolate him due to complaints from other soldiers who felt uncomfortable living with A.
The place where A stayed was a building used as temporary accommodation during the COVID-19 pandemic, located about 100 meters away from the unit barracks. A military official stated, "According to regulations, A should have been transferred to another unit, but since his discharge was scheduled for December and was imminent, separation measures were taken considering his wishes."
However, there were issues with the unit's management of A. A lived separately, eating alone after other soldiers finished their meals, and on the evening before his death, he reportedly confided in another soldier about the loneliness and difficulties of living alone. He also complained to unit officials that the accommodation was too cold.
Problems also emerged regarding the circumstances in which A’s death was discovered. On the day of his death, which was a Saturday, he was found around 1:50 p.m. covered with a blanket. Since the morning roll call was not conducted for A, he was only discovered in the afternoon. The first person to confirm A’s death was an officer who happened to visit the place to retrieve something. There is regret that if basic procedures such as morning roll call had been conducted on the day of death to check A’s health status, emergency measures such as hospital transfer could have been taken.
There is also controversy over the disciplinary period imposed on A. He lived alone for 17 days until his death. However, the Military Personnel Act stipulates that the period of confinement should be within 15 days, leading to criticism that the punishment exceeded the appropriate duration. The autopsy by the National Forensic Service concluded that the cause of A’s death was 'unknown,' but noted the possibility of 'sudden adult death syndrome' as a clue. 'Sudden adult death syndrome' refers to the sudden death of a young adult without any prior medical history, and does not explain the cause of death.
The military police investigating the case found no criminal involvement and did not transfer the case to civilian police. However, the military police recognized the need to discipline unit officials for negligence in managing A and requested disciplinary action from the unit. As of now, nearly 10 months after A’s death, no disciplinary measures have been taken.
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