Kim Rahn is the managing editor of The Korea Times. Since joining the company in 2003, she has covered various beats including the presidential office, Seoul city government, the Bank of Korea and the tourism industry. In 2014, she won the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award for her coverage of the ordeals of migrant women in Korea.
Man gets 3 years in jail for ruckus on bridge
The police SWAT team checks a trailer truck on Geoga Bridge in Busan, after suppressing the driver who caused a commotion while under the influence of alcohol, blocking the bridge for five hours, in this September photo. / Yonhap
By Kim Rahn
By Kim Rahn
The Busan District Court sentenced a truck driver to three years in jail, Tuesday, for causing an obstruction in the middle of Geoga Bridge in Busan last September while under the influence of alcohol and forcing its shutdown for five hours.
The court accepted charges of drunk driving, disturbing traffic, damaging property and obstructing public duty.
According to the ruling, the intoxicated driver, 58, crashed his trailer truck into a guardrail near the bridge connecting Busan and Geoje Island at around 11:36 p.m. on Sept. 10.
He locked himself inside the truck, refusing to follow police orders to get out. He rammed his truck into patrol cars and tried to escape, despite the efforts of dozens of police and rescue officers. The incident ended about five hours later after the police defamed him when he opened the door of the truck in an attempt to jump off the bridge.
“He committed the crime while he was under a suspended jail term for a separate charge. He should take responsibility as a massive number of police personnel and vehicles were mobilized and he paralyzed the bridge for a long time,” the court said.