Three Ex-Police Officers Found Guilty of Destroying Evidence in Seoul Crowd Crush

A South Korean court on Wednesday found three former police officers guilty of destroying evidence showing police were aware of security risks during Halloween festivities in Seoul before a deadly mob that shocked the nation in 2022.

The officers were the first officials convicted of crimes related to the event, which killed nearly 160 people, making it one of the worst peacetime disasters in the country's history. They were found guilty of destroying evidence, including deleting an internal report that warned of the potential for accidents during Halloween celebrations.

A court in Seoul has sentenced Park Seong-min, a senior official at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, to 18 months in prison. Kim Jin-ho, a former Yongsan Police Station official, was given a one-year suspended prison sentence. Kwak Young-seok, a former officer at Yongsan Police Station, was given a four-month suspended sentence. Attorneys for the former officers could not immediately be reached for comment.

The court found that Mr Park had ordered Mr Kim and his subordinates to delete the documents out of fear that the data, if leaked by investigators or the media, would lead to police being held criminally liable for the disaster .

On the night of October 29, 2022, police stations in Seoul received dozens of calls from panicked witnesses who feared impending crowds on the streets of Itaewon, a neighborhood known for its bars and clubs, where people were celebrating Halloween.

According to an initial investigation, it took hours for officers to reach the location after the initial calls. By then, hundreds of people were crowded into a narrow, sloping alley, crushing others. After the disaster, many South Koreans gathered around grieving relatives to demand that officials be held accountable.

The convictions stem from an investigation last year led by the National Police Agency, in which officials were responsible for what happened that night. Officials recommended that 23 people would be charged in connection with the incident. After being fired from their positions and arrested in 2022, the three officers were among those investigators say caused the tragedy.

Last month, Kim Kwang-ho, the head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, was charged with negligence. He is the highest-ranking official to face criminal charges in connection with the mass crowds. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison or a fine of up to $15,000.

Since the massive crowds, President Yoon Suk Yeol's government has faced constant criticism and demands from the public to take responsibility for the disaster. Many have seen the government's response as inadequate, saying it had not apologized for what happened.

Mr Yoon sparked further public anger last month when he vetoed a bill passed by lawmakers in the National Assembly that would have appointed a special prosecutor to launch an independent investigation into the disaster, and instead would provide financial compensation to the surviving relatives. of the victims.