'Mistaken for Plaster Cast'... Leg Found in Incheon Disposed of by Nursing Home Volunteer

It has been confirmed that the leg of an 80-year-old nursing home patient, which was discovered at a public recycling facility in Incheon, was mistakenly disposed of by a volunteer at the nursing home.
According to the Incheon Yeonsu Police Station on Friday (June 19), it was determined that a nursing home in Jung-gu, Incheon, had disposed of the leg of an 80-year-old patient, identified as A, who underwent an amputation surgery on June 8, by wrapping it in bandages and placing it in a designated medical waste container.
The investigation revealed that the following day, a 60-year-old male volunteer named B was cleaning the trash cans when he mistook the leg inside the medical waste container for plaster cast waste and discarded it in a recycling bag.
The leg was discovered on June 10 at approximately 2:30 p.m. by a worker at the Southern Regional Resource Recovery Center in Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, who was sorting recyclables and reported it to the police.
The police had been investigating various possibilities to identify the owner of the leg, but the case was resolved on June 17 when the nursing home voluntarily reported the incident.
The head of the nursing department at the facility saw the news on the afternoon of June 17 at approximately 5:00 p.m. and realized that the patient A's leg had been amputated at the hospital where they worked. After reviewing CCTV footage and statements from hospital staff, the hospital's administrative director reported the incident to the police.
The police collected DNA from patient A and requested an emergency analysis from the National Forensic Service, which provided a verbal report confirming that the DNA matched that of the discovered leg.
The police are currently investigating the hospital's medical waste management practices and whether there were any violations of the Medical Service Act, such as illegal surgeries.
Under the current Wastes Control Act, medical waste, including human tissue, must be placed in designated containers and strictly separated from other waste during collection and transport.
Violations of this law can result in up to two years in prison or a fine of up to 20 million won.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.