Seoul Police Agency Reveals Drunk Driving and Hit-and-Run Case
Driver Clings to Officer Asking About Drinking and Starts Vehicle
"Drank After Escape," Denies Drunk Driving
A driver who fled while hanging onto a police officer’s vehicle after a report of suspected drunk driving was apprehended. On the 9th, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s YouTube channel uploaded a video covering a recent drunk driving and escape incident that occurred in Sinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. At the time, the police responded after receiving the initial report suspecting drunk driving, and officers were deployed along the suspect’s reported and expected routes.
The officers dispatched to the suspect’s registered address searched the underground parking lot for the vehicle. Confirming that the vehicle was not yet there, they began to stake out the area where the suspect was expected to arrive. Shortly after, as expected, the suspect’s vehicle appeared, and the police immediately blocked the car. When the officer asked the suspect to roll down the window, the suspect hesitated and did not comply. Only after repeated orders to lower the window did the suspect roll it down and ask, “What’s going on?” Sergeant Jeong Hyun-wook of the Seoul Western Police Station, who introduced the case, said, “There was a strong smell of alcohol inside the driver’s car, and judging by the complexion and expression, it was clear the driver was intoxicated.”
When the officer asked the suspect to get out of the car and whether he had been drinking, the suspect attempted to flee. The officer grabbed the steering wheel and the suspect’s arm, shouting “Stop immediately,” and ran alongside the vehicle at its speed. Despite this, the suspect ignored the officer and accelerated, leading the officer to decide he could no longer keep up and stop. The officer immediately reported the suspect’s description and escape to the 112 Integrated Security Situation Room and requested support from nearby officers and the control center.
Fearing a more serious accident, the police visited the suspect’s home and asked the suspect’s wife to persuade him to surrender, but the suspect never appeared. The police checked closed-circuit television (CCTV) and the control center and thoroughly searched the area, eventually locating the vehicle two hours after the escape. However, the suspect had already abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot.
However, when the police called the suspect pretending to be the building manager and asked him to move the car, the suspect voluntarily appeared at the scene 20 minutes later. After spotting the officers searching the area, he attempted to flee again, but the police chased him for about 20 to 30 meters and made an emergency arrest. The suspect then refused a breathalyzer test and requested a blood test, which confirmed a license cancellation-level blood alcohol concentration. During this process, the suspect reportedly told the police, “After fleeing, I bought and drank alcohol at a convenience store.” Nevertheless, the suspect was charged with drunk driving and sent to the prosecution.
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