Police Chief Acknowledges "Inadequate On-Site Response in Itaewon"... Establishment of Independent Special Agency

Multiple 112 Emergency Calls Alert Danger
"Clearly Identify the Truth and Determine Responsibility"

Yoon Hee-geun, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, is making a public apology regarding the 'Itaewon Disaster' at the National Police Agency in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, on the 1st.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Yoon Hee-geun, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, acknowledged the police's inadequate on-site response regarding the Itaewon incident on the 1st and stated, "We will establish an independent special task force within the National Police Agency to uncover the truth."

Commissioner Yoon held a press briefing at the National Police Agency in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, in the morning and said, "There were multiple 112 emergency calls warning of the seriousness at the scene just before the accident occurred," adding, "We judged that the on-site response to handle these calls was insufficient." He emphasized, "To clearly reveal the truth of this incident and identify responsibility, we will promptly and rigorously conduct thorough inspections and investigations without exception in all areas."

Commissioner Yoon promised, "We will thoroughly verify the facts regarding whether proper measures were taken after receiving the 112 emergency calls that warned of the danger in advance." Furthermore, he said, "We will investigate without omission the appropriateness of the overall on-site response and whether the actions of commanders at all levels and personnel were adequate." The inspections and investigations related to this will be handled by the independent special task force to be established within the National Police Agency. However, the timing of its establishment, its scale, and who will participate as members were not disclosed on this day.

Regarding future inspections and investigations, Commissioner Yoon stated, "To meet the public's expectations and fulfill the responsibilities entrusted to the police, I will approach this with the resolve of 'eupchamma-sok,' willing to make painful sacrifices for the greater good." He added, "We will also meticulously review from the ground up whether there were any shortcomings in the coordinated response of related agencies responsible for public safety and identify structural problems." Additionally, he promised, "We will actively participate in discussions on government-wide measures to prevent recurrence in the future and fulfill the police's role and responsibility to ensure that such incidents never happen again."

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