Special Investigation Unit to Conduct Additional Investigation of Choi Seongbeom, Chief of Yongsan Fire Station, on the 26th

Former Yongsan Police Chief Lee Im-jae Also Coordinating Schedule for Re-summoning

Yongsan Fire Station Chief Choi Seong-beom is being summoned to the Itaewon Accident Special Investigation Headquarters in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the 21st. Photo by Kang Jin-hyeong aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The Police Agency's Special Investigation Headquarters (SIH), which is investigating the Itaewon disaster, will summon Choi Seongbeom, the head of Yongsan Fire Station, for questioning again on the 26th.

According to the police on the 22nd, the SIH plans to recall Chief Choi, who is accused of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, on the morning of the 26th for additional investigation. The SIH conducted an intensive interrogation of Chief Choi for more than 13 hours from 10 a.m. to around 11:20 p.m. the previous day. It is known that Chief Choi denied the charges during the first investigation. In particular, he actively explained the reasons for not promptly issuing Fire Response Level 2 and for not stationing safety patrol personnel in front of the Hamilton Hotel, where the disaster occurred.

The SIH plans to focus on identifying charges during the second investigation. They suspect that Chief Choi failed to properly assess the situation on site, including not responding to the police's joint response request. On the day of the disaster, Chief Choi issued Response Level 1 at 10:43 a.m., but Levels 2 and 3 were issued by the Seoul Fire Disaster Headquarters chief. Regarding this, Chief Choi explained to reporters after the previous day's investigation, "I was focused on rescue activities, so I could not issue them directly."

The SIH also plans to summon former Yongsan Police Station Chief Lee Imjae, who was summoned and questioned as a suspect along with Chief Choi the previous day, for additional questioning this week. The specific date of summons is being coordinated with former Chief Lee. During the first investigation, the SIH thoroughly examined the circumstances of former Chief Lee’s late arrival at the accident scene and delayed reporting to the police command. In the second investigation, they plan to focus on questioning the suspicion that although the Yongsan Police Station requested support from the Riot Police Unit before the disaster, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency ignored the request.

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