By South China Morning Post | Created at 2024-10-01 03:18:20 | Updated at 2024-10-01 07:10:27
3 hours ago
A South Korean court has handed down prison sentences to three police officers over their botched handling of a 2022 Halloween crush in a Seoul nightlife district that killed nearly 160 people.
It was the first conviction of officials over the failure by authorities to prevent or adequately respond to the overcrowding that occurred in the popular Itaewon district. No top-level officials have been charged or held accountable, prompting criticism from bereaved families and opposition politicians.
07:09
Families of victims in Seoul stampede still waiting for answers 1 year after Halloween tragedy
Families of victims in Seoul stampede still waiting for answers 1 year after Halloween tragedy
The crush, one of the biggest peacetime disasters in South Korea, caused a nationwide outpouring of grief. The victims, who were mostly in their 20s and 30s, had gathered in Itaewon for Halloween celebrations.
The Seoul Western District Court on Monday sentenced Lee Im-jae, the former chief of Seoul’s Yongsan police station, whose jurisdiction includes Itaewon, to three years in prison. It sentenced another Yongsan police officer to two years in prison and gave a third officer a suspended two-year term.
The three officers were convicted of professional negligence resulting in death. The court ruled that the crush wasn’t a natural disaster and could have been prevented or the toll reduced if the three officers had prepared properly for the crowd, alerted others of the danger quickly and supervised other police officers appropriately.
