Cheongju High School Student in Knife Rampage Planned Attack in Advance: "School Was Too Difficult"

Police Apply for Arrest Warrant on Charges Including Attempted Murder

It has been revealed that a high school student who injured six people, including school staff, in a knife rampage at a high school in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, had planned the crime in advance.

Police and others are assessing the situation at a high school in Cheongju where a student knife rampage occurred on the 28th. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 29th, the Heungdeok Police Station in Cheongju announced that it would apply for an arrest warrant for student A, a 17-year-old second-year student at a high school in Cheongju, on charges including attempted murder.

During the police investigation, A stated, "I endured the difficulties of school life for a long time, but finally exploded." It was reported that A had been studying hard with the goal of entering university, but his grades did not meet his expectations. He also suffered from significant stress due to issues such as his family's health.

It was found that the day before the crime, he placed several knives from home into his bag and left a note at home hinting at his intentions.

The police view this as a premeditated crime and plan to conduct forensic analysis on A's mobile phone and laptop to investigate the crime preparation process.

A is accused of wielding a knife at around 8:33 a.m. the previous day in the first-floor hallway of his school, seriously injuring three school officials, including the principal and a maintenance staff member. On the day of the incident, he arrived at school earlier than usual, talked with a counseling teacher in a special education classroom, then used physical force before coming out into the hallway to commit the attack. Other knives he had packed the previous day were also found in his bag.

After causing the disturbance in the school, he left the building and fled to a nearby lake park. During his escape, he also attacked two residents he encountered and jumped into a reservoir in the nearby park, from which he was rescued by 119 emergency responders.

He entered the school last year as a special education student and was assigned to a special class, but this year, as part of a full integration policy, he studied in a regular class and continued to receive counseling and other special education services.