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Five police officers accused of torture by human rights group
By Lee Hyo-sik
Staff reporter
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has filed a complaint with the prosecution against five police officers who it alleges to have tortured dozens of suspects over the past year.
The commission said Wednesday that it referred five policemen working at the Yangcheon Police Station in southwestern Seoul to the prosecution, accusing them of having illegally tortured suspects by employing inhumane methods to coerce confessions from them. It also called for a full-scale investigation into the police station by the National Police Agency Commissioner General to check whether it performs its duties within the boundaries of the law.
But the police flatly denied the NHRC allegations, denouncing them as groundless.
A 45-year old who was arrested on theft charges filed a petition with the commission against the Yangcheon Police Station in May, insisting he was tortured into confessing his crime. The suspect claimed that he was first gagged and then his face was wrapped in Scotch tape.
After having received two more similar complaints, NHRC officials have met face to face with 32 criminal suspects interrogated at the police station from August 2009 through March this year and secured testimonies from 22 that they were physically abused during the interrogation.
They implicated five police officers employing a range of torturous methods to either get confessions or force subjects to state details of cases for the convenience of the police.
Some said they had to confess their crimes because of extreme physical pain as a result of the torture.
The commission said it has secured medical records from the suspects.
"Given credible testimonies and circumstantial evidence, we believe many suspects were physically abused by police officers in a patrol car and at other blind spots at the station, which are not covered by surveillance cameras," an NHRC official said.
However, the Yangcheon Police Station flatly rejected the commission's claim, saying none of its officers engaged in illegal activities. It also said it will take legal action against the commission if the prosecution finds no fault with its officers.