'Group Home' Child Abuse Whistleblowing Sparks Heat in Pohang Area... Police Send 5 to Prosecution

Facility Manager Reported for 'Confinement Life' of Disabled Children in Care
Mutual Accusations Between Former Staff and Manager Escalate to Lawsuits
Police Forward Five Suspects Including CEO and Staff to Prosecutors
Civic Group Protests "Whist

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Dong-wook] It has been partially confirmed through police investigation that children with disabilities protected by a group home in the Pohang area were confined and abused, leading to the transfer of five people, including the operation representative and staff, to the prosecution.

Upon receiving notification of these investigation results from the police, Pohang City issued an operation suspension order for the facility and relocated six residents to other facilities. However, local disability protection organizations have demanded a thorough investigation, arguing that from the initial reporting process, Pohang City and the police did not protect the whistleblower staff member of the facility but instead treated them as a suspect, causing the controversy to escalate.

According to Pohang City on the 16th, on April 24, Mr. A, the facility manager of a group home in Sangdae-dong, Pohang, reported to the child protection agency and police that a 10-year-old child with intellectual disabilities was confined in a solitary room and was not allowed outside except during meal times.

At that time, Pohang City, along with the child protection agency, conducted an on-site investigation at the facility and judged that there was no particular abuse, transferring only the child in question to another institution. The facility was protecting a total of six children, including three with intellectual disabilities and three general children. Group homes are a type of private child protection facility operated with budget support for disabled or children who cannot be raised in a normal family during their growth period (under 18 years old).

However, as whistleblower Mr. A and accused Mr. B blamed each other and filed mutual lawsuits, the issue of abuse of disabled children at the facility became a major topic in the local community.

Eventually, after a lengthy investigation of about 50 days, the police named five suspects on the 15th, including the group home representative, former and current facility managers Mr. A and Mr. B, and two staff members, and sent the case to the prosecution.

In this regard, three social organizations, including the Gyeongbuk Disability Discrimination Solidarity, held a press conference on the 16th, stating, "The child in question was confined in a solitary room with a locking device, showing extreme abuse conditions such as pica (the symptom of eating non-food items)," and "especially, the whistleblower was reversed and identified as the abuser by the actual perpetrator," urging Pohang City to investigate the truth.

Regarding this, a Pohang City official said, "Since the police have sent five people, including the facility representative, as 'suspects' to the prosecution, we had no choice but to admit the remaining five children to other institutions," adding, "If illegal acts are confirmed according to future judicial rulings, we plan to take administrative actions such as facility closure and qualification suspension against the facility."

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