Teacher Adds Mosquito Repellent to Kindergarten Meals... Children Suffer Nosebleeds and Vomiting, Parents 'Furious'

Kindergarten Teacher Repeatedly Adds Unknown Substances to Meals
Children Who Ate the Meals Experience Headaches, Nosebleeds, Stomach Pains
Petitions Raised on Blue House Petition Board and Superintendent's Office
Experts Say "Clear Criminal Act Beyond Child Abuse"

A kindergarten teacher was caught on internal closed-circuit television (CCTV) multiple times putting an unidentified substance into the lunch containers for the children. Photo by jtbc News capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-eun] Recently, controversy has arisen after a kindergarten teacher in Seoul was found to have put unidentified liquids and powders into the meals of children and fellow teachers. Analysis of the substances revealed mosquito repellent and surfactant components, intensifying criticism from parents and the public.

According to media reports on the 31st, in November of last year, a kindergarten teacher identified as A in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, was caught on internal CCTV multiple times putting unidentified liquids and powders into the lunch containers of fellow teachers and children. The police are currently investigating.

Footage released by a media outlet shows A putting a powdery substance, presumed to be powder, into the side dish containers used by 6-year-old children. Six days later, A was again seen in front of the 6-year-old class’s meal table squeezing an unidentified liquid from a child’s medicine bottle into side dishes and sauces.

The meal into which A put the unidentified liquid was consumed by 11 children that day. Additionally, CCTV footage confirmed more than three instances of A giving chocolates coated with unidentified substances to children in their class, as well as allegations of putting unknown liquids into the thermoses of fellow teachers.

A kindergarten teacher was caught on internal closed-circuit television (CCTV) repeatedly putting an unidentified substance into the lunch containers for the children. Photo by JTBC News capture

After reviewing the CCTV footage, parents reported the teacher to the police, who collected eight bottles of liquid medicine from A’s desk. Subsequent detailed analysis by the National Forensic Service in December last year found that the collected bottles contained mosquito repellent and surfactants?chemical substances that require immediate medical attention if ingested.

Surfactants are chemicals found in pesticides, cosmetics, and detergents. According to domestic research, ingesting about one teaspoon of surfactant can cause hypotension symptoms in 47% of cases and may be accompanied by serious complications such as loss of consciousness, respiratory failure, kidney damage, and arrhythmia.

However, A currently denies all charges, including child abuse, claiming to the police that the liquid put into the food was just plain water and the powder was harmless ginger powder.

Furthermore, A filed an appeal against the suspension imposed at the start of the police investigation, applying for cancellation of the suspension with the Seoul Southern Office of Education at the end of December last year.

Photo by Cheongwadae National Petition Board Capture

In connection with this, on the 27th, a petition requesting the dismissal and punishment of the teacher was posted on the Blue House’s public petition board. The petitioner appealed, saying, "Parents watched videos of children eating delicious meals without knowing anything, even asking for more rice and side dishes, and despite the incident already having happened, they shouted not to eat and beat their chests, shedding endless tears."

The petitioner continued, "Children who ate meals containing unidentified powders and liquids simultaneously experienced headaches, nosebleeds, abdominal pain, vomiting, and allergic reactions," adding, "Children who had nosebleeds that lasted over 20 minutes, children who were so dizzy they could barely sit up and lay down bleeding from the nose, and children who suffered terrible abdominal pain with cold sweat?all the children who ate the meals complained of abnormal symptoms they had never experienced before."

The petitioner stated, "Even now, a month after the incident, the children show abnormal blood test results, but parents cannot sleep thinking about the terrible diseases that might strike the children years later, like with the humidifier disinfectant case," and urged punishment and dismissal of A, saying, "This incident is child abuse but also a serious crime against a wide range of victims."

As of 3 p.m. on the 19th, the petition had garnered over 18,000 signatures. In addition, a parent of a child at the kindergarten posted a citizen petition on the 'Open Superintendent’s Office' website of Seoul Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon, showing continued outrage among parents.

Experts have pointed out that such actions are clear criminal acts. Bae Moon-sang, team leader of the Seoul branch of the Korea Child Abuse Prevention Association, said, "Deliberately putting unknown substances into food that children eat goes beyond abuse and constitutes a serious crime."

Team leader Bae added, "Because children have weaker bodies, even small amounts of harmful substances can cause reactions different from adults and may be life-threatening. This is a serious matter," emphasizing, "While hygiene issues in school meals are often considered, deliberate child crimes like this are often overlooked. To prevent further victimization, more thorough inspections such as checking teachers’ belongings are necessary."

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