"If I am unhappy, others must be unhappy too" Consecutive 'random crimes' cause 'anxiety' among citizens

"Unprovoked 'Random Crimes'... Citizens Feel 'Anxious'
Experts Say 'Antisocial Crimes Must Be Severely Punished'"

[Asia Economy reporters Han Seung-gon and Kim Young-eun] So-called 'random attacks'?crimes where strangers are assaulted or attacked with weapons without any apparent reason?are occurring repeatedly. In particular, there are cases where perpetrators commit similar crimes repeatedly, increasing public anxiety. Experts emphasize that these crimes are antisocial in nature and require strict punishment.

On the 15th, a woman in her 20s who wielded a weapon against a stranger at a PC bang in Busan was sentenced to four years in prison. According to the verdict, the woman, intoxicated in July, took a weapon from her home with the thought "Since I am unhappy, others must be unhappy too" and headed to a PC bang.

Upon arriving at the PC bang, the perpetrator stabbed a female customer with the prepared weapon, then swung the weapon at another woman who tried to intervene, as well as at an employee in the PC bang. The victim suffered serious injuries requiring 12 weeks of treatment, including lung damage.

On the 4th in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, a man in his 60s sitting on a bench by the roadside was indiscriminately assaulted by a stranger. The victim was hit multiple times on the head and stepped on. Last month, a coast guard officer in Seogwipo, Jeju, assaulted high school students walking on the street and also attacked a nearby truck driver.

Additionally, between April and June, a woman repeatedly committed six random attacks around Gangnam-gu, Seoul.

She stabbed apartment residents with an umbrella and grabbed their collars, cursed at other victims and pulled their hair, and hit the chest and kicked the thigh of a person trying to break up a fight.

A man suspected of assault in the so-called 'Seoul Station random assault case' is being transferred to the Railroad Special Judicial Police Unit at Yongsan Police Station in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the morning of June 4 for additional investigation.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Also, in May during broad daylight, a man assaulted a woman in her 30s at the Seoul Station waiting area and fled, but was caught by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s Railway Special Judicial Police seven days after the incident. Due to the perpetrator’s indiscriminate assault, the victim suffered severe injuries including a depressed cheekbone and a torn forehead, and later developed insomnia and panic disorder.

The perpetrator was found to have a prior record of multiple 'random attacks.' The suspect is under investigation for six additional assault charges, including verbally abusing and spitting at pedestrians waiting at crosswalks in February and June this year, and assaulting a neighboring woman.

Given these circumstances, citizens are trembling with anxiety. A woman in her 20s, Ms. A, who lives alone near Yongsan-gu, Seoul, lamented, "I am tense not only on my way home at night but also during the day these days because I never know what might happen." She added, "Even though the culprit can be caught through CCTV, the fact that crimes can happen anytime makes it inevitably unsettling."

A man in his 30s, office worker Mr. Kim, said, "Random attacks cause significant stress due to the anxiety they create. You never know when or where you might become a victim, so I hope the level of punishment is increased."

Experts emphasize that these crimes cause severe harm and require strong punishment. Professor Lee Soo-jung, a criminal psychology professor at Kyonggi University, stressed, "Whether due to social hostility or other reasons, random attacks committed by antisocial criminals with intent must be punished severely."

Regarding violent acts by some patients with schizophrenia, she urged, "Since some crimes may be impulsive, it is a future task for society to establish a management system for patients (by the state)."

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