One dies, three injured in Seoul stabbing rampage

Published July 22, 2023
POLICE investigate the scene of the attack near a subway station.—AFP
POLICE investigate the scene of the attack near a subway station.—AFP

SEOUL: One person was killed and another three were wounded when a man went on a “stabbing rampage” near a subway station in the South Korean capital Seoul on Friday.

The attack took place near the Sillim subway station in south-west Seoul, police said, adding that the suspect had been detained at the scene.

“The suspect is a man in his 30s and he did not look intoxicated. We are questioning him as to the motive of his crime,” they said.

Video posted on a local television station showed orange-vested emergency responders running towards the incident carrying stretchers.

Police had cordoned off the area with yellow tape, the footage showed.

“The man shouted he didn’t want to live any more as he was being apprehended by the police,” the TV channel reported. Grainy footage appeared to show police apprehending the suspect, who had sat down on steps and seemed to sit passively as armed police approached him and placed him under arrest.

“People ran into my store, telling me a man with a big knife was stabbing people. We locked the door,” a store owner in the area said.

Eyewitnesses said the suspect stabbed a man who was talking on the phone in the back multiple times before running off and attacking more people. “All four victims are reportedly men,” it added.

South Korea is typically an extremely safe country, with a murder rate of just 1.3 per 100,000 people in 2021, according to official statistics.

By comparison, America has 7.8 homicide deaths per 100,000 people, according to the country’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Published in Dawn, July 22nd, 2023

Opinion

Editorial

Budget for stabilisation
Updated 13 Jun, 2024

Budget for stabilisation

The proposed steps lack any “disruptive policy changes", especially to "right-size" the govt, and doubts remain on authorities' ability to enforce new measures.
State of the economy
13 Jun, 2024

State of the economy

THE current fiscal year is but another year lost. Going by the new Pakistan Economic Survey, which maps the state of...
Unyielding onslaught
Updated 13 Jun, 2024

Unyielding onslaught

SEVEN soldiers paid the ultimate price in Lakki Marwat on Sunday when their vehicle was blown up in an IED attack,...
X diplomacy
Updated 12 Jun, 2024

X diplomacy

Both states can pursue adversarial policies, or come to the negotiating table and frankly discuss all outstanding issues, which can be tackled through dialogue.
Strange decisions
12 Jun, 2024

Strange decisions

THE ECP continues to wade deeper and deeper into controversy. Through its most recent decision, it had granted major...
Interest rate cut
Updated 11 Jun, 2024

Interest rate cut

The decision underscores SBP’s confidence that economic stability is gaining traction.