Man Who Stole Store Money and Threatened Elderly Couple... Police Let Him Go After He Said "I'm Going Home"

After Stealing Cash Box, Returned and Said "Pay My Hospital Bill"
"Want to Close the Door?", "I'll Smash Everything" Verbal Abuse
Police Just Let Them Go... Business Owner "Too Anxious to Sleep"

A man who stole money from a store and threatened the owner was released without punishment.

JTBC's 'Case Officer' reported on the 12th about an elderly couple who had to close their store due to the misconduct of a man. According to a tipster who introduced himself as the couple's grandson, on the 7th in Asan, Chungnam, a man entered the store run by the couple. After confirming that no one was at the cash register, he grabbed the cash box and ran away. The grandmother inside the store at the time was unaware that the man had entered or taken the cash box. The man's theft was fully captured on the closed-circuit television (CCTV).

Soon after, the man returned to the store and shouted at the grandmother, saying "Give me water" and "Give me a drink." The grandmother tried to settle the situation by handing him a chocolate milk. However, when he came again, he claimed, "I drank the milk you gave me and got sick, so I went to the hospital. Pay for the hospital bill," demanding money. Even then, the grandmother did not realize that this man was the cash box thief. He threatened the owner, saying, "Do you want to close the store? I will smash everything," and hurled insults. Eventually, the elderly couple calmed him down and gave him all the money they had before sending him away. Later, they realized the cash box was missing and reported it to the police.

The man was eventually caught by the police who responded to the report. It was confirmed that he had hidden the cash box in a nearby building. However, for some reason, the police brought him back to the store and released him without any measures in the early morning. The police stated, "The man said he wanted to go to Busan, where his home is, so we told him not to come back here and sent him away." However, the elderly couple, who had already endured threats and verbal abuse, expressed, "We were afraid he would come back for revenge," and "We couldn't sleep properly."

Netizens who learned about the incident reacted with comments such as, "The police response is completely incomprehensible," "How can they just release someone who threatened the owner and even threw punches?" and "Because such acts go unpunished, criminals are running rampant in society."