Police Investigate 33 Posts of False Information and Defamation on Itaewon Disaster... 4 Referred to Prosecution

Nam Gu-jun, Chief of the National Investigation Headquarters, National Police Agency [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] On the 28th, the police announced that they have referred four individuals to the prosecution on charges of spreading false information and malicious defamation online related to the Itaewon tragedy.

Nam Gu-jun, head of the National Investigation Headquarters at the National Police Agency, stated at a regular press briefing held in writing on the same day, "We have launched investigations into 33 illegal acts including malicious false and defamatory posts about the victims of the Itaewon tragedy and the leakage of personal information, and have sent four cases to the prosecution." However, Nam added, "Since this is an ongoing investigation, I cannot provide specific details," and did not elaborate further.

Following the Itaewon tragedy, the police began investigations as acts such as blaming victims online, leaking personal information, and defaming the deceased with unverified facts continued. A dedicated team composed of cyber investigators from the headquarters and each metropolitan police agency has been investigating malicious defamation posts and requesting deletion and blocking from the Korea Communications Standards Commission.

The police have also started investigating the case of an online media outlet that disclosed the list of victims of the tragedy. Nam said, "The Anti-Corruption and Public Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency is conducting the investigation," adding, "The investigation team is verifying how the list was obtained and disclosed through questioning related parties and analyzing materials." He further stated, "We are comprehensively reviewing relevant laws and precedents," and "We will promptly carry out necessary investigations."

Nam also explained that the Police Agency’s Special Inspection Team is investigating allegations of inadequate police response related to the tragedy. He said, "We are reviewing and analyzing the appropriateness of the police’s handling on the day of the tragedy based on testimonies from related personnel, CCTV footage, and phone call records." As of the morning of the same day, the Special Inspection Team had requested investigation by the Police Agency’s Special Investigation Headquarters (Special Investigation Unit) for six individuals, including former Yongsan Police Station Chief Lee Im-jae, former Seoul Police Agency Personnel and Education Division Chief Ryu Mi-jin, and former Seoul Police Agency Public Safety Information External Affairs Division Chief Park Sung-min.

Regarding criticism that the police were negligent in crowd control on the day of the tragedy due to focusing on drug crackdowns, Nam maintained the existing police position. He said, "Excluding personnel involved in COVID-19 prevention and crackdown activities, the number of personnel deployed to maintain security in Itaewon during this year’s Halloween period was actually higher compared to previous years," adding, "Even after recognizing the incident, all criminal personnel were redeployed to the accident site to perform CPR and secure ambulance routes to provide aid to the casualties."

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