Cops beat up man during mistaken arrest

An image of a man who was beaten by police officers during a mistaken arrest / Yonhap

By Jung Min-ho

Police officers threw a few punches at a man as he strongly resisted, Saturday, only to realize later he was not the criminal suspect they were looking for.

The National Police Agency said Monday it is now investigating the allegation that three police officers beat up a man near Oksu Station in Seoul, thinking he was a member of a voice-phishing group they were looking for.

The police officers took him to Seongdong Police Station, where they found out they had made a big mistake.

The police officers visited the man Sunday to apologize. Police said they are in talks with him over compensation for his physical and mental injuries.

The incident came into the spotlight after the man posted pictures of his bruised face on Facebook, saying he was assaulted by police for no reason.

He noted he resisted tooth and nail, thinking the police officers were human traffickers.