Teenage Boy and Girl Visiting Convenience Store to Buy Cigarettes Assault Part-Time Worker Who Asked for ID Verification

Dongducheon Police Station Books Two Teenagers on Special Assault Charges
Assaulted with an Empty Bottle When Asked for ID

Teenagers who assaulted a convenience store employee with a liquor bottle after being asked for identification while trying to buy cigarettes were caught by the police.

On the 23rd, the Dongducheon Police Station in Gyeonggi Province announced that they had booked A (17) and B (17) on charges of special assault. They are accused of assaulting C, a male employee in his 20s working at a convenience store in Jihaeng-dong, Dongducheon City, with a liquor bottle and their hands and feet around 11 p.m. on the 20th.

Teenagers who assaulted a convenience store employee with a liquor bottle after being asked for identification while trying to buy cigarettes were arrested by the police. On the 23rd, the Dongducheon Police Station in Gyeonggi announced that A (17) and B (17) were booked on charges of aggravated assault. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Getty Images Bank

It was investigated that A went to the convenience store to purchase cigarettes, and when the employee asked to see his ID, he grabbed an empty liquor bottle from outside and struck C on the head. B is also known to have assaulted C with hands and feet. The assaulted C quickly escaped from the convenience store and called 112, and the police who arrived caught them one by one around the convenience store. During the police investigation, they reportedly stated, "We committed the crime because we got angry when asked to show our ID." The police have secured CCTV footage from inside the convenience store and are investigating the circumstances of the incident. They plan to send A and B to the prosecution soon.

350 Convenience Store Crimes Last Year... Convenience Store Workers Exposed to Crime

Meanwhile, convenience stores have a higher crime rate compared to other commercial facilities such as large marts and supermarkets due to their accessibility, high possibility of criminals fleeing, and the prevalence of single-person work shifts. As various incidents targeting convenience store workers continued, in 2017, nationwide franchise convenience store branches signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the National Police Agency to promote the installation of 'emergency safety bells' inside convenience stores. The safety bell is a safety device that allows convenience store workers to press a hidden button on the POS machine or counter for a few seconds, which immediately sends a report to the nearby police station or precinct, prompting police dispatch.

Currently, there is a 112 emergency call bell at convenience store counters, but since it takes time for the police to arrive, response in urgent situations can be delayed. Some store owners and part-time workers have expressed fear because of this. Recently, incidents and accidents at convenience stores have not stopped. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a part-time worker was assaulted after asking customers to wear masks, and there was also a case where a middle school student claiming to be a 'juvenile offender' caused a disturbance. There was even an incident where someone drove a car into a convenience store because they were not given a plastic bag after purchasing items.

The increase in incidents and accidents surrounding convenience stores is also reflected in statistics. According to the '2023 Crime Statistics' published by the National Police Agency, there were a total of 350 crimes at convenience stores last year, a 9.7% increase compared to 319 cases in 2022. Crimes inside convenience stores have increased every year over the past three years: 273 cases in 2021, 319 in 2022, and 350 in 2023. The most common type of crime was sexual harassment (85.3%), followed by robbery (11.2%) and arson (1.1%).

Among these, after the convenience store murder incident in Incheon last year, more convenience store owners have been equipping self-defense items at the counters. In fact, posts expressing anxiety and seeking opinions on self-defense items have been continuously posted in communities where convenience store owners and part-time workers gather. Some owners posted photos of hammers placed in cigarette display cases, axes hidden at the counter, and self-defense sprays placed next to the POS machine. One convenience store owner posted a photo saying they always keep a small self-defense spray that looks like lipstick.