Police Chief: "Investigating 45 Cases of False Information on New Coronavirus and 2 Cases of Mask Hoarding"

20-Year-Old Arrested for Disorderly Conduct and Claiming COVID-19 as a 'Feigning Illness'

Commissioner Min Gap-ryong of the National Police Agency. / Photo by Jin-hyeong Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The police are accelerating investigations related to the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan Pneumonia), including false fabricated information, personal information leaks, and mask hoarding. Some suspects have been arrested or had arrest warrants requested, signaling a strict response policy.

On the 10th, Police Commissioner Min Gap-ryong stated at a press conference, "We are currently investigating a total of 45 cases related to false fabricated information and personal information leaks."

Commissioner Min emphasized, "We are considering arrest investigations for malicious and organized dissemination acts," adding, "The affected local communities suffer significant adverse effects to the extent that various livelihood activities are disrupted," and "We have taken measures to conduct focused investigations on these types of cases."

In fact, through police investigations, a man in his 20s who caused a disturbance at a restaurant in Mapo-gu, Seoul, was arrested after pretending to be infected with the novel coronavirus, and later caused another disturbance at a club and assaulted police officers. He has been detained. Regarding a 20-year-old YouTuber who secretly filmed a 'hidden camera' related to the novel coronavirus on the Busan subway, an arrest warrant has been requested, and the prosecution has filed it with the court.

Commissioner Min said, "Acts such as causing a disturbance claiming to be infected with the novel coronavirus or mocking it by staging performances in multi-use facilities are antisocial behaviors," and added, "We will investigate these strictly."

Investigations have also begun in earnest into the hoarding of masks, which are in short supply. Thirty police officers have been dispatched to the government joint crackdown team related to this. Commissioner Min stated, "Since the government notice on the 5th, two cases have been reported and are being urgently investigated," and added, "Since this issue is directly related to individual health, if there is even a hint of wrongdoing, we will promptly investigate and take firm action."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.