A man in his 50s who called police and warned of a random knife attack was recently released with just a warning, local media outlets reported Monday. According to a News1 report, officials of the Ilsan Seobu Police Station arrested a man in his 50s at around 9:50 p.m. on Nov. 5 after he called the 112 police emergency number and said he would kill many people at a bus terminal. "I will kill everyone at the terminal with a knife. Come quickly," he reportedly told police. Officials foun

Social Affairs Nov. 11, 2024

The Coast Guard on Monday expanded the area in which it is searching for the crew members who went missing last week when a fishing boat sank off the coast of Jeju Island, as another body found the day before brought the death toll to four. The Jeju Coast Guard said 47 boats and eight aircraft were mobilized in the day's search for the 10 missing crew members across an area measuring 64 kilometers by 28 kilometers. The search continued for a fourth straight day in the waters near the wrecka

Social Affairs Nov. 11, 2024

An unexpected lighting failure that occurred during the 19th Busan Fireworks Festival on Saturday was caused by three teenagers, according to the event’s organizers on Sunday. The teens' unauthorized entrance into the control room for the festival led to the light failure, according to the organizing committee of the annual festival in the second-largest Korean city. The teens touched a cable connected to light controls on the bridge Gwangandaegyo while being escorted out by security,

Social Affairs Nov. 11, 2024

The number of estimated drug users in South Korea has surged to over 400,000 this year, but several of the state-designated hospitals for drug addiction treatment have not treated a single patient this year. According to local DongA Ilbo newspaper, a Ministry of Health and Welfare report estimated that 400,530 people in South Korea are thought to have used illegal drugs this year. This figure is derived from the ministry's formula of multiplying by 30 the actual number of those investigated

Social Affairs Nov. 9, 2024

South Korean officials have confirmed the location of the sunken fishing boat off the coast of Jeju Island, but a tangled fishing net is making the search for the vessel difficult, Jeju Coast Guard said Friday. Officials from the Coast Guard held a briefing at 2 p.m. on the search and rescue operations for the crew of the 129-ton Geumseong which sank early Friday morning, leaving two of the 27 crew dead and 12 unaccounted for. Sixteen of the crew were Korean and 11 were of foreign nationality. U

Social Affairs Nov. 8, 2024

South Korean prosecutors on Thursday requested an appellate court to hand a 25-year prison term to a 20-year-old over the death of a mentally disabled 18-year-old, who died after the accused pushed him into the sea for losing a game. Prosecutors want the defendant convicted of murder, after a lower court found him guilty only of a lesser offence. He pushed the victim into the sea in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, on Feb.1. The defendant lured the victim to the port by suggesting to go fishing,

Social Affairs Nov. 8, 2024

A woman accused of causing her newborn's death and then hiding the baby's body was sentenced to a four-year prison term by a local court, officials said Thursday. Daejeon District Court on Oct. 26 found the defendant guilty of violating Article 4 of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes, death resulting from child abuse. The defendant in her 30s was held responsible for the death of her child, who died a week after being born in September 2019. The de

Social Affairs Nov. 8, 2024

A fishing boat carrying 27 people sank off the coast of Jeju Island on Friday, leaving two dead and 12 missing as authorities set up an emergency task force for rescue operations. As of Friday morning, Jeju Special Self-Governing Province is commanding rescue operations at the emergency headquarters in Jeju City. Dozens of vessels and multiple aircraft from the Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force and the civilian sector are conducting search and rescue operations in the waters off Biyangdo Island. Pr

Social Affairs Nov. 8, 2024

Well over 1,000 applicants have applied for the city of Seoul's matchmaking program, which will bring together 100 unmarried men and women to find their match near the Han River on Nov. 23. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, 1,673 people had applied for the program as of Wednesday. Applications for the program opened Oct. 21. Those wishing to participate can throw their hats into the ring until Friday. The gender ratio of the applicants so far is about 55 percent men and 45 per

Culture Nov. 7, 2024

As Donald Trump gets ready to kick off a second nonconsecutive term as the president of the United States, a survey shows that the majority of South Koreans do not prefer him as the leader of the country's most important ally. Local pollster Gongjung conducted a Nov. 4-5 survey of 1,000 adults, commissioned by media outlet Dailian, which showed that 76.8 percent of respondents here thought that a Kamala Harris win in the US presidential election would have been most beneficial for South Kor

Social Affairs Nov. 7, 2024

A man in his 30s was arrested for murder of his father, who is thought to have inflicted repeated physical abuse on the son and his wife for years. Seoul Seobu Police Station said Thursday that it has forwarded the case to the prosecutors. The suspect is accused of beating his father, who was in his 70s, to death with a blunt object at their home in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, on Oct.27. The suspect had gotten infuriated by his father, who cursed at his mother and demanded money to buy alcohol. The sus

Social Affairs Nov. 7, 2024

The South Korean police said Wednesday it is investigating a man in his 50s on suspicion of murdering his girlfriend over an argument that broke out because he thought she was looking down on him. The suspect is accused of killing the victim, also in her 50s, at a motel in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on Tuesday, according to the Paju Police Station. He then called the victim's family at around 8:20 p.m. and confessed the murder to them, who immediately called the police. The police found the

Social Affairs Nov. 6, 2024

A man who lost consciousness while eating at a restaurant was rescued by a fellow diner and police who promptly arrived on the scene, Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency revealed in a recent video. The clip posted on its official YouTube channel showed an incident that occurred at a restaurant in September. The man suddenly lost consciousness while having a meal with his friend, after which the friend immediately called the 119 emergency service for help. A person who was sitting on the table n

Social Affairs Nov. 6, 2024

A South Korean internet celebrity is being pelted with criticism over causing a drunk driving accident and then joking that she may as well have "killed" the victim. The YouTube streamer in her 20s is being investigated for drunk driving, according to the officials at the Incheon Bupyeong Police Station. She is accused of ramming her car into another at around 12:40 a.m. last Friday in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, while driving under the influence of alcohol. Her blood alcohol level tested at

Social Affairs Nov. 6, 2024

Judicial and police officers will keep a close eye on notorious child rapist Cho Doo-soon's new home from literally across the street, as the city government of Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, said Wednesday that it had rented a unit near his residence. Cho, who was released four years ago after serving 12 years in prison for raping an 8-year-old girl, relocated to a multiunit home in Wa-dong, Danwon-gu in the same city last month. This sparked concerns over child safety in the area, despite the

Social Affairs Nov. 6, 2024