Former Yongsan police chief sentenced to three years over Itaewon crowd crush disaster

Former Seoul Yongsan Police Precinct Chief Lee Im-jae, who was brought to trial on charges of poor response to the Itaewon crowd crush disaster of Oct. 29, 2022, was sentenced to three years in prison by a Seoul court on Monday.

A bereaved family member of the Itaewon crowd crush disaster cries out in despair in front of the Seoul Western District Court in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Monday, after Yongsan District Office Chief Park Hee-young, who was found not guilty, left the court building following the hearing. [YONHAP]

Former Seoul Yongsan Police Precinct Chief Lee Im-jae, who was brought to trial on charges of poor response to the Itaewon crowd crush disaster of Oct. 29, 2022, was sentenced to three years in prison by a Seoul court on Monday.

This ruling came about a month before the second anniversary of the tragedy that took 159 lives, and it is the first time that a person in charge of directing the on-site police response at the time of the disaster has been found to have committed professional negligence.

In a separate ruling, Yongsan District Office Chief Park Hee-young was found not guilty. Prosecutors had previously recommended a prison sentence of seven years for Park on July 24 this year.

The Seoul Western District Court on Monday sentenced Lee to three years in prison at the sentencing hearing for the Yongsan Police Precinct and district office officials for negligence resulting in death during their duties at the time of the Itaewon disaster.

Former Yongsan Police Precinct situation room chief Song Byeong-ju, who was indicted together with Lee, was sentenced to two years in prison, and a former situation team leader surnamed Park was sentenced to one year in jail with two years probation.

“A staggering number of people lost their precious lives in the largest disaster in Korea since the Sewol Ferry sinking in 2014 and the largest loss of life in downtown Seoul since the Sampoong Department Store disaster of 1995,” the court said in a statement. “We cannot deny that the Itaewon disaster was not a natural disaster, but a man-made disaster that could have been prevented if everyone involved had fulfilled their duty with care.”

Lee’s attorneys argued that he could not have predicted the large-scale crowd crush in Itaewon and that he and his team had done their best under the given circumstances in preparing for the Halloween festival and in taking measures after the accident, but the court did not accept this argument.

“Considering media coverage and police reports, it is judged that it was foreseeable that a large crowd of people would gather in the sloping alleys of Itaewon on Halloween 2022, causing pedestrians to push and press each other, posing a serious risk,” the court said.

The court also found that Lee had in his former position as chief of Yongsan Police Precinct a duty to control and manage the situation at the time, pointing out that "the crowds flowing into Itaewon continued to increase from the afternoon of the day of the accident, and from 6:30 p.m.,” adding that “there was a 112 report requesting management of the risk of crushing and personnel control near the accident, but the 112 self-communication network was not properly listened to.”

However, the court cleared Lee for deploying riot police to the disaster scene.

Lee was arrested and indicted in January last year on charges of failing to establish accident prevention measures, deploying riot police and failing to control roads in a timely manner despite the large crowds in the Itaewon area on the day of the Itaewon disaster, thereby increasing casualties.

He was also indicted on charges of instructing employees to falsely record the time of his arrival at the scene to conceal his poor response and falsely testifying at a National Assembly hearing regarding the disaster.

The court did not cancel the former chief's bail on Monday.

Lee was released on bail on July 6 last year, about six months after his arrest and indictment, and has been on trial without detention.

Yongsan District Office Chief Park Hee-young, who was accused of a poor response to the Itaewon crowd crush disaster, leaves the Seoul Western District Court in Mapo District, western Seoul, after completing a sentencing hearing on Monday. [NEWS1]

Meanwhile, in a subsequent trial, all Yongsan District officials, including chief Park, former deputy chief Yoo Seung-jae, former safety and disaster prevention division chief Choi Won-jun, and former safety construction and transportation chief Moon In-hwan, who were all indicted on charges of negligent homicide, were found not guilty.

Park and others were brought to trial in January last year on charges of failing to establish a safety management plan and failing to properly operate the disaster safety situation room despite the large crowds on the day of the disaster, which could have been expected.

The court ruled that "at the time of this incident, the Disaster and Safety Act did not classify crowd crush accidents as a type of disaster, and in particular, the act did not provide a mandatory provision requiring the establishment of a separate safety management plan for events without an organizer."

Accordingly, the court ruled that "there does not appear to be any negligence in the course of preparing pre-emptive measures that should be held criminally responsible by the defendants."

The bereaved families strongly protested the acquittal of Park.

"For two years, we have been appealing to the streets about the injustice our children suffered and have continued to point out and speak of the irresponsibility and incompetence of those responsible,” said Lee Jeong-min, the head of the Itaewon Tragedy Bereaved Families Association, said at a press conference after the court hearing. “And yet, the results of today's trial are so dismal."

Some bereaved families even lay down in front of Park's vehicle and were dragged out by the police.

After the sentencing, Park left the courtroom without answering reporters‘ questions, while Lee said that he “respects the court’s decision” and that he “apologizes to the bereaved families before leaving the courtroom.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]