'Gangnam 8-Car Pileup' Unlicensed Driver in 20s Arrested

Result of the Arrest Warrant Hearing: 'Arrest Warrant Issued'

A man in his 20s who caused an eight-vehicle pileup in the middle of Gangnam-gu, Seoul, during the daytime on the weekend was arrested on the 4th.

Shin Young-hee, the presiding judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, conducted a pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant review) for the driver, Kim, for about 30 minutes starting at 3:30 p.m. that day, and issued an arrest warrant citing "risk of flight." Kim had driven his mother's car without a license and caused two traffic accidents on the afternoon of the 2nd.

A woman in her 20s who drove without a license and drove in the wrong direction after an accident in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, is entering the Seoul Central District Court on the 4th to undergo a pre-trial detention hearing. Yonhap News

At around 1 p.m. on the 2nd, Kim hit a woman in her 30s pushing a stroller with her 4-year-old son on a side street in Geoyeo-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, and fled the scene. About 40 minutes later, at approximately 1:39 p.m., Kim repeatedly collided with vehicles and even drove against traffic on Teheran-ro in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu. After the accident, Kim did not exit the vehicle and was arrested on the spot by the police who arrived at the scene. Nine people sustained minor injuries in the accident, and a total of eight vehicles, including Kim’s car and motorcycles, were damaged.

It was confirmed that despite his mother’s pleas to "take a taxi," Kim drove from his mother’s house in Geoyeo-dong, Songpa-gu, to his own residence in Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam-gu. During the police investigation, Kim reportedly stated that he had been taking sedatives due to insomnia and had driven his mother’s car several times before the accident. It is known that Kim has never obtained a driver’s license.

The Gangnam Police Station in Seoul applied charges against Kim under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes for hit-and-run causing injury, violations of the Road Traffic Act (unlicensed driving), and violations of the Special Act on the Settlement of Traffic Accidents, and requested an arrest warrant the day before. The police have requested a detailed analysis of Kim’s blood and sedatives from the National Forensic Service.

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