Police response to Incheon shooting under investigation for alleged mishandling

Police search the suspect’s residence in northeastern Seoul's Dobong District, July 21, following his claim of having planted explosives at home. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Fire and Disaster Headquarters

Authorities have launched an internal investigation into the police response to the recent homemade firearm homicide in Songdo, Incheon, after it was revealed that officers waited more than 70 minutes to enter the scene despite receiving urgent calls for help.

The National Police Agency’s audit office said it has begun a fact-finding probe to determine whether officers at the scene failed to take appropriate action in the critical early moments of the incident.

According to Rep. Youn Kun-young of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, police received the first emergency call at 9:31 p.m. on July 20 from the wife of the victim, who said her husband had been shot.

“Please help us, my husband was shot. Come quickly,” she pleaded. The transcript also captured the woman urging her children to hurry into a room, as her father-in-law remained outside holding a gun.

In a second six-minute call, she explained that her husband was bleeding heavily and that the gunman was her father-in-law. She informed the dispatcher that the front door had been opened and that officers could also enter through the terrace using a ladder.

In a follow-up call, the woman pleaded again: “Please come quickly. My husband is lying by the door. What if he dies? Please just call me when the police arrive.”

Records show three patrol cars reached the scene within 10 minutes of the first report. The electronic door lock had been damaged by gunfire and could be opened at any time, yet the officers waited outside and made no attempt to enter until a special police unit arrived.

The SWAT team reached the scene at 10:16 p.m. and entered the apartment at 10:40 p.m., by which time the suspect, a 62-year-old man identified only by his surname A, had already fled.

His son, a 33-year-old man who had been shot in the chest, was taken to a hospital but later died. A was apprehended in Seoul at around 12:20 a.m. the next day, approximately three hours after the shooting.

Homemade explosives, including plastic bottles filled with thinner, are found at the suspect’s apartment in northeastern Seoul's Dobong District, July 21. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Fire and Disaster Headquarters

At his home in Seoul’s Dobong District, police discovered 15 homemade explosive devices made from plastic bottles, detergent containers and lighter fluid. A timer had been set to ignite the materials around noon on July 21.

The delay in the police response has sparked public outrage, with critics pointing to a lack of urgency despite the evident threat.

The ongoing investigation will assess whether protocol was followed and whether stronger action could have prevented the suspect’s escape or saved the victim’s life.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.