South KoreaitaewonCelebrated on October 29, 2022Halloween, over 100,000 people gathered, and unfortunately a serious stampede occurred, resulting in the tragic deaths of 159 people. After a year and three months, 60-year-old Seoul police chief Kim Kwang-ho was transferred because of his poor response to the disaster. A trial was held on the 19th and he was charged with official murder by the chief prosecutor. Seoul Western District Prosecutor’s Office.

Yonhap News Agency reported that Kim Kwang-ho is the highest-ranking police officer to be held responsible for the Itaewon incident. Prosecutors said that although Kim Kwang-ho had predicted the danger of the accident, he failed to deploy appropriate police forces and did not take necessary measures such as proactively ordering or supervising, resulting in mass casualties. Officials said only 137 police officers were deployed in Itaewon that night.

An organization representing the families of the victims issued a statement saying that Kim Kwang-ho “was fully aware of the dangers he posed to the public and ignored the Itaewon tragedy for some unknown reasons.”

The organization also accused Kim of “violating his specific obligations by failing to properly use his power to deploy police” and called for him to be “severely punished.”

In addition, Yoo Mi-jin, former director of the Personnel Training Department of Seoul City, who served as a situation management officer in Seoul on the day of the incident, and Jang Mo, leader of the 112 situation team, were also prosecuted. He was charged with murder by professional negligence.

A total of 19 people were prosecuted for the Itaewon disaster, including Kim Kwang-ho, who was convicted, and two companies, including the Hamilton Tourism Bureau, which operates the Hamilton Hotel, where the incident occurred.

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