Juvenile crime becoming more violent

From 2011 to 2015, 16,565 major crimes in Korea were committed by those aged 10 to 18. / Courtesy of Twitter

By Lee Han-soo

Juvenile crime is getting more violent and crude, shocking the public and even police.

In one case, a teenager, 19, murdered his mother and aunt in August. The teenager, who had been recently graduated high school, was allegedly on drugs at the time.

Other cases include a runaway teen murdering a woman while robbing her apartment and one who set a private academy on fire that resulted in two deaths.

According to Park Nam-chun, a lawmaker from the main opposition party Minjoo Party of Korea, the cases are only the tip of the iceberg.

From 2011 to 2015, 16,565 major crimes were committed by those aged 10 to 18. The crimes include 109 murders, 3,584 burglaries, 11,783 sexual assaults and 1,134 arson cases.

Experts say most of the crimes occur impulsively and are especially more threatening because the teenagers feel little remorse.

Driving accidents and vehicle crimes involving teenagers are also on the rise, with more than 26,745 cases over the past three years.

Experts say more measures are needed to stop teenage offenders because most violent crimes often start from a crime committed out of curiosity.

“Youths who commit crime are often outside the protection provided by their schools or homes,” said a police official in charge of juvenile crime, according to Yonhap news agency. “It is urgent that we establish a social system that can provide counsel and therapy to the young people.”