Prosecutors Arrest and Indict Myeong Jae-wan, Teacher Who Killed Elementary Student in Daejeon: "Unusual Motive Planned Crime"

Charges of Kidnapping for Profit and Enticement
Suffered from Abandonment Anxiety and Difficulty Controlling Emotions
"We Will Do Our Best to Ensure a Severe Sentence"

A teacher, Myung Jae-wan (48), who murdered an 8-year-old student, Kim Ha-neul, with a weapon at an elementary school in Seo-gu, Daejeon, has been arrested and indicted.

The Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office announced on the 27th that Myung was arrested and indicted on charges including violation of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (for profit kidnapping and enticement). The case was described as an 'abnormal motive crime' in which anger stemming from family discord, regret over a hasty reinstatement, and workplace maladjustment escalated, leading him to brutally kill an elementary school student who was weaker than himself to relieve that anger. It is known that Myung had been suffering from abandonment anxiety and difficulty controlling emotions.

Personal information of Myung Jae-wan (48), the teacher who murdered an elementary school student in Daejeon. Daejeon Police Agency website

Additionally, the prosecution classified the crime as a meticulously planned offense, considering that Myung prepared the weapon in advance by searching the internet, and selected an easy place and time to commit the crime to lure the victim. A prosecution official stated, "We will do our best to ensure that the defendant in the 'Daejeon Elementary School Teacher Murder Case,' which caused great shock and sorrow to the public, receives a severe sentence commensurate with the crime."

Myung is accused of luring Kim to the audiovisual room at the elementary school where he worked on the 10th of last month and stabbing her multiple times with a weapon, killing her. Immediately after the crime, he attempted self-harm, injuring his wrist and neck, and was transported to the hospital. Before surgery, he confessed to the crime.

The Daejeon Police Agency disclosed Myung’s personal information on their website on the 12th. The review committee decided to disclose the information after comprehensively considering the brutality of the crime, the seriousness of the victim’s harm, and the opinions of the victim’s family. According to the Act on the Disclosure of Personal Information of Suspects of Specific Serious Crimes, there must be a five-day grace period after the committee’s decision to disclose personal information. However, if the suspect expresses no objection to the disclosure decision, the information can be disclosed immediately. Myung submitted a written statement expressing 'no objection' to the committee’s decision.