Stabbing rampage, vehicle attack near Seoul an ‘act of terrorism’, President Yoon says
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Thursday's attack near Seoul left 14 people wounded, with two of them in a critical condition.
PHOTO: REUTERS
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol has described Thursday’s stabbing rampage and vehicle attack
A statement issued by his spokesman on Friday said he has ordered the police to employ the toughest measures in responding to the incident, saying “all possible police forces should be mobilised” to allay the concerns of residents.
“The stabbing rampage at Seohyeon subway station is an act of terrorism against innocent citizens,” Mr Yoon said, as reported by Yonhap news agency.
Thursday’s incident occurred at around 6pm at AK Plaza near Seohyeon metro station in Seongnam, a satellite city of Seoul.
A man rammed his car into passers-by, before going on a stabbing frenzy at a department store adjacent to the metro station.
The attack left 14 people wounded – nine in the stabbing attack and five in the car crash. Twelve of them suffered serious injuries.
Two of the 14 victims are in critical condition, rescue authorities said on Friday, adding that they could become brain dead.
Police arrested the assailant on Thursday and conducted a drug test which returned a negative result. They identified the attacker only by his surname, Choi, and said he is 22.
Media reports said he had a job in the delivery industry and suffered from mental health issues.
Police Commissioner-General Yoon Hee-keun has warned people to be on guard for such attacks. He urged officials to be vigilant and look out for copycat crimes.
Thursday’s incident came over a week after a separate stabbing incident
The Ministry of Justice on Friday said it will take steps to introduce life sentence without parole as a countermeasure for such violent crimes, reported The Korea Herald.
Knife attacks are rare in South Korea, where the number of intentional homicide victims remained below one for every 100,000 people from 2011 to 2018.
This is lower than the global average of 5.8 out of 100,000 people, according to an estimate by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
