The bereaved family of a woman in her 60s who was struck and killed by a police patrol car dispatched after a report of a person lying on a road has demanded that murder charges be applied to the officer who drove the vehicle.
Around 12:45 a.m. on July 3, victim A, who had collapsed on a back road in Michuhol-gu, Incheon, was hit and killed by a patrol car.
In a media interview, the family of victim A claimed, "Based on a witness statement, after the patrol car ran over A for the first time, the driver felt the jolt of the vehicle and remained parked for about 10 seconds."
They further claimed, "Police Officer B of a district unit under the Michuhol Police Station, who was driving the patrol car, did not get out immediately to rescue A, but instead moved the patrol car, running over A a second time, and only got out after moving another 15 meters or so when police officers from a following patrol car shouted."
The bereaved family argued that such actions constitute murder by dolus eventualis (implied intent), as the driver continued to operate the vehicle even after realizing a person was trapped underneath.
Accordingly, they argued that Officer B should be charged with murder or fleeing resulting in death under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Crimes, and that the case should be handled as a major crime.
They pointed out that although the exact home address near the accident site was provided during the initial report, the dispatched police officers drove slowly around the area or failed to fulfill their duty of care.
The bereaved family added, "The police have also failed to provide materials related to the 112 emergency call. Therefore, we filed a request for criminal evidence preservation with the court regarding the 112 situation room records."
The police have booked Officer B without detention on charges of causing death through professional negligence under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Settlement of Traffic Accidents and are investigating the case.
Officer B reportedly explained to the police, "I failed to properly see that A was lying on the ground."
The police plan to verify the exact circumstances of the accident based on the results of A's autopsy and the on-site inspection analysis by the Korea Road Traffic Authority.
(Reported by Lee Hyeon-yeong | Video by Lee Eui-seon | Design by Lee Su-min | Produced by SBS Digital News)
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