Former 112 Situation Room Chief Song Byeong-ju Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison
Lee Im-jae, former chief of the Seoul Yongsan Police Station (54), who was indicted for aggravating the damage due to inadequate response during the Itaewon disaster, was sentenced to imprisonment with labor in the first trial.
On the 30th, Lee Im-jae, former chief of the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul (54), is leaving the Seoul Western District Court. [Photo by Yonhap News]
On the 30th, the Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Western District Court (Presiding Judge Bae Seong-jung) sentenced Lee, the former chief, to three years of imprisonment with labor on charges of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, falsification and use of false official documents, and violation of the Act on Testimony, Appraisal, etc. in the National Assembly. The court recognized Lee’s guilt only on the charge of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, and acquitted him of the charges of falsification and use of false official documents and violation of the Act on Testimony, Appraisal, etc. in the National Assembly.
The court stated, "The defendant was the police chief overseeing public safety in Yongsan-gu and had the responsibility to prepare and implement comprehensive measures, mobilizing various human and material resources to respond. However, due to a complacent attitude, he caused a tragic outcome." Nevertheless, the court explained the sentencing by considering "the defendant’s efforts to deploy more police officers at the Itaewon site than before and his deep remorse for the large-scale casualties in his jurisdiction."
Lee was indicted in January last year on charges of professional negligence resulting in death and injury for failing to foresee the occurrence of casualties due to the large crowd on the day of the disaster, not establishing accident prevention measures, and failing to take timely actions such as deploying riot police and controlling roads, which aggravated the casualties.
He was also indicted on charges of falsification and use of false official documents for instructing staff to record a false arrival time at the scene to cover up the inadequate response, and on charges of violating the Act on Testimony, Appraisal, etc. in the National Assembly for testifying falsely at a parliamentary hearing that he recognized the disaster later than he actually did and falsely stating that he ordered the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency to request support from the riot police.
Meanwhile, the court also delivered verdicts for Song Byung-joo, former head of the Yongsan Police Station 112 Situation Room; Park In-hyeok, former head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency 112 Situation Team; Jeong Hyun-woo, former head of the Yongsan Police Station Women and Youth Division; and Choi Yong-won, former lieutenant of the Yongsan Police Station Community Safety Division. Song and Park were sentenced to two years and one year of imprisonment with labor, respectively, with Park receiving a two-year probation, while Choi and Jeong were acquitted.
Song was charged with failing to take appropriate safety measures, such as pushing the crowd that spilled onto the roadway back onto the sidewalk despite 112 emergency calls warning of the risk of crushing just before the disaster. Park was charged with failing to properly implement safety measures related to the crowd.
Jeong was charged with falsification and use of false official documents for relaying Lee’s orders from the rooftop of the Itaewon police substation to Lieutenant Choi, who was preparing a report in the substation office, thereby being involved in the creation of a false situation report.
The court stated, "The Itaewon disaster is the largest casualty incident in South Korea since the Sewol ferry sinking, and it cannot be denied that it was a man-made disaster that could have been prevented if the defendants had fulfilled their duties of care in their respective positions." However, the court added, "It is difficult to view the disaster as caused by a single factor or individual, and the country’s insufficient disaster response capabilities and the lack of manpower at the Yongsan Police Station on the day of the incident cannot be ignored, making it harsh to attribute sole responsibility to the defendants."
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