Police arrived at deadly shooting site in Incheon without proper equipment

A transcript of conversations among police officers responding to last month's deadly shooting in Incheon indicates that the officers did not have proper safety equipment, causing a slight delay in their entry into the crime scene. Rep. Youn Kun-young of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea on Monday revealed the transcripts of radio transmissions between the control center of the Yeonsu Police Station in Incheon and the on-site officers, who were sent to a home where a 62-year-old suspect had s

Aug. 5, 2025

Number of organ donors drops 11% on-year

The number of organ donors and those who signed up for deceased organ donation decreased in South Korea last year, while the waiting list of potential recipients grows, data showed Tuesday. According to a report by the state-run National Institute of Organ, Tissues and Blood Management, 3,931 people donated organs in South Korea in 2024, down 11.3 percent compared to 4,431 the previous year. The number of brain death donors and deceased donors each dropped from 483 to 397, and 38 to 10, respecti

Aug. 5, 2025

Church, far-right pastor raided over Jan. court attack

South Korean police on Tuesday conducted a search and seizure operation at Sarang Jeil Church as part of a criminal investigation into pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon, who is affiliated with the church and is suspected of inciting an assault earlier this year on a court that issued an arrest warrant for then-President Yoon Suk Yeol. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said that the church, located in Seongbuk-gu, northern Seoul, was raided at around 6:30 a.m., with officers searching the entire building

Aug. 5, 2025

Man who killed abusive father gets reduced sentence

A man convicted of patricide received a reduced sentence in his appellate trial, as the court took into consideration that the murder had been an unplanned act in response to the victim's frequent abuse of his family. The Seoul High Court upheld the ruling that found the defendant in his 30s guilty of the murder of an ascendant, but reduced the prison term to six years from the lower court's 10 years. It rejected the defendant’s claims that his actions were in self-defense against the victim, wh

Aug. 4, 2025

Abuse of ER staff rises 37% in three years

A total of 801 cases of abuse in hospital emergency rooms were reported across the country last year, a government data showed Sunday, having risen each year since 585 reported in 2021. The most frequent problem was abusive language, accounting for 73.3 percent of all cases (587), according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare data submitted to Rep. Kim Mi-ae of the main opposition People Power Party. It was followed by 123 cases of physical assault, 36 cases of threats, and 28 cases of destroy

Aug. 4, 2025

Former NK soldier, jailed here for 42 years, may return home

South Korea's Ministry of Unification is reportedly reviewing the possible repatriation of Ahn Hak-sop, a former North Korean soldier captured during the 1950-53 Korean War whose refusal to renounce the North's communist system led him to be imprisoned for over four decades. According to Yonhap News Agency on Monday, the 95-year-old Ahn submitted a request to the government in July asking to be returned to the North. Ministry officials visited him at his hospital on July 23 to check on his physi

Aug. 4, 2025

Banker's death caused by stress from new duties: court

A South Korean court has ruled that the death of a bank employee was work-related, caused by excessive stress from his new assignment. The Seoul Administrative Court ordered the state-run Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service (K-Comwell) to pay full benefits to the bereaved family and reimburse them for funeral expenses, ruling in favor of the family, who filed a lawsuit last year. The man, who was 38 years old when he died, had been working at a local bank since 2012 and was assigned

Aug. 4, 2025

Working long hours at night doubles health risks: study

Shift work, nighttime work, and longer working hours could be more than twice as harmful on one's physical and mental health compared to those with regular working conditions, a study by a government-affiliated think-tank showed Thursday. The recent report by the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute researched the detrimental effects of what it called "irregular labor conditions," and found that those working in shifts, long hours and at night are 129 percent more likely to develop

Aug. 2, 2025

Middle-schoolers under investigation for assaulting 6th-grader, forcing her to drink alcohol

Three middle school students are being investigated on charges of abuse against a 13-year-old girl, who was allegedly beaten all night and forced to drink alcohol by the older students. Officials at the Chungju Police Station said Thursday they had summoned the three adolescent suspects -- one 14 years old and in her first year of middle school and the other two in their second year -- for questioning over the suspected abuse of the sixth-grader. The 14-year-old girl, who knew the victim, report

Aug. 1, 2025

Lab behind woman's unnecessary mastectomy stripped of state endorsement

Health authorities reportedly decided to suspend the state approval for medical activities of GC Labs for one month, after the institute's blunder led to a cancer misdiagnosis for a woman whose left breast was removed as a result. Local broadcaster MBN News reported that the Ministry of Health and Welfare on Friday decided to cancel the government authorization for the clinical laboratory that conducts medical analyses commissioned by local hospitals. The endorsement allows the institute to be r

Aug. 1, 2025