Woman wearing cat mask arrested after knife incident at supermarket in Geoje

In a bizarre scene straight out of a horror comedy, a woman in a cat mask stormed a supermarket in Geoje, South Gyeongsang, meowing at police before being dragged away.

A woman in a cat mask storms a supermarket in Geoje, South Gyeongsang, with knives in hand, on Aug. 2, in this footage released by the National Police Agency on its YouTube channel on Aug. 27. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

In a bizarre scene straight out of a horror comedy, a woman in a cat mask stormed a supermarket in Okpo-dong, Geoje, South Gyeongsang, meowing at police before being dragged away.

The woman, reportedly in her 20s, was arrested on Aug. 2 after roaming through a supermarket swinging knives in the air and stabbing them into display stands. She was later booked on charges of carrying dangerous weapons in a public place.

Video footage released by the National Police Agency on its official YouTube channel showed the woman, wearing a cat mask, wandering the aisles before picking up knives in the toy section. She raised them high and approached a group of children, who ran away as she looked around for them.

Supermarket employees rushed in, urging her to calm down, but retreated when the woman approached with the knives. They then evacuated customers and returned with umbrellas, confronting her and demanding she put the knives down. Instead, the woman charged at them in agitation.

Police officers who arrived after a 112 emergency call approached the woman with shields and batons, repeatedly ordering her to drop the knives before subduing her and arresting her on the spot.

A woman in a cat mask storms a supermarket in Geoje, South Gyeongsang, with knives in hand, on Aug. 2, in this footage released by the National Police Agency on its YouTube channel on Aug. 27. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

When asked by police whether she had other weapons or why she was carrying the knives, the woman responded, “Meow” and “I can’t tell you, meow.”

To a question about whether she had a cell phone, she replied, “Why would I respond to that meow?”

No one was injured in the incident, according to police.

Police said the woman had a history of mental illness and was forcibly admitted to a hospital. They plan to send the case to prosecutors after completing a preliminary investigation.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY HYEON YE-SEUL [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]