Justice Ministry ‘Deeply Apologizes’ for Incheon Knife Rampage; to Overhaul Electronic Monitoring System

[Financial News] The Ministry of Justice apologized on the 13th over a knife rampage in Incheon by a person under electronic monitoring (wearing an electronic ankle bracelet) and said it would conduct a comprehensive review of its guidance and supervision system for those under electronic monitoring.
In a notice to the media that day, the Ministry of Justice said, “We deeply apologize for causing great concern to the public over the knife rampage by a person under electronic monitoring in Incheon today.”
It added, “We are taking this incident very seriously and thoroughly investigating the circumstances and the entire process for managing electronic monitoring,” and said, “We will conduct a comprehensive review of the guidance and supervision system for electronic monitoring and swiftly prepare the necessary institutional reforms and supplementary measures.”
The ministry said it would “make every effort to prevent similar incidents from happening again, with the life and safety of the public as our top priority,” and offered words of comfort to the victims and their families.
Earlier that day, at around 1:40 p.m., a man in his 50s identified as A went on a knife rampage against people he did not know at a large commercial facility in Guwol-dong, Namdong-gu, Incheon, injuring eight people. He was found to have been wearing an electronic monitoring device.
According to the Ministry of Justice, since electronic monitoring began in 2019, A had complied with guidance and supervision and continued to receive psychiatric treatment. He had no history of reoffending.
However, while staging a one-person protest against a hospital with which he had recently had a dispute, he used a kitchen knife he had brought from home to make a hole in the placard he was holding. He was booked on suspicion of possessing a dangerous weapon. He had since also received counseling for alcohol addiction and psychological counseling to help alleviate symptoms of mental illness.
Guidance and supervision were also carried out on the morning of the incident. From 10 to 11 a.m., A received addiction counseling from an outside expert. From 11:20 to 11:55 a.m., he met with a probation officer and underwent a check to see whether he had taken his medication for mental illness. The test found that he had taken it.
The probation officer then continued the guidance and supervision over lunch with A until around 12:30 p.m., according to the findings. The Ministry of Justice said it had found no tampering with or attempted tampering with the electronic device, or any violations of the conditions, before the incident.
 
[email protected] Choi Eun-sol Reporter