The Seohyeon Station Stabbing Incident: A Tragedy that Took Away the Ordinary Lives of Innocent Citizens
Two years ago, on August 3, 2023, around 6 PM, a shocking incident occurred near Seohyeon Station in Bundang, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province.
Witness accounts of individuals bleeding and collapsing quickly spread across various online communities and social media, leading to a report to 119 stating that "a man is stabbing people with a weapon."
At the time, 22-year-old Choi Won-jong drove his car onto the sidewalk in front of the department store, hitting five pedestrians, and subsequently entered the store, indiscriminately wielding a weapon.
On that day, nine citizens, who had no previous acquaintance with him, were injured by his assault.
As a result of Choi Won-jong's indiscriminate terror, a woman in her 60s and a woman in her 20s eventually died, leading to a total of 12 people sustaining injuries.
Choi Won-jong was arrested within 10 minutes of the crime, during which he stated in police questioning that he was overcome by delusions that he was being "monitored by a stalking organization" and needed to kill people around him.
He believed that police intervention was necessary to bring awareness to the seriousness of this stalking organization and chose the department store as a crime scene to harm as many people as possible.
The Background and Mental State of the Perpetrator, and the Heartbreaking Stories of the Victims
During his middle school years, Choi Won-jong was a quiet and isolated child. His classmates recalled that he was not very noticeable and had no close friends.
From his third year of middle school, he displayed a tendency to be withdrawn and reserved, leading him to begin receiving treatment from a mental health psychiatrist.
In 2017, he was diagnosed with schizoid personality disorder but went on to attend a general high school. He later dropped out and entered a four-year university through a GED in 2019, but dropped out again the following year.
Before the incident, Choi Won-jong exhibited risky behaviors, such as posting images of war crimes or supporting war criminals online.
He showed particular interest in the knife attack incident at Sillim Station in 2023, posting about having "enhanced individual military power" along with a photo of himself holding a sickle.
Considering the brutality of the crime and the severity of the damages, the police disclosed Choi Won-jong's identity.
Among the victims, the late Lee Hee-nam (65 at the time) was transported to the hospital in a state of cardiac arrest and passed away three days after the incident.
She had been walking hand-in-hand with her husband to go out for a meal when the tragedy struck. Additionally, the late Kim Hye-bin (20 years old at the time), an art student, fell into a coma after being struck by a vehicle and ultimately passed away 25 days later.
Kim was returning home after finishing her part-time job at an art academy.
The husband of victim Lee expressed, "My wife was my first love, met in our first year of university. She collapsed, bleeding, in an instant while we were walking hand in hand, and I was the only one left alive. Our family was shattered in a moment," reflecting his deep sorrow.
He described the incident as a "politically planned terror attack" and appealed for the death penalty.
Kim's mother also lamented, "Hye-bin will never be able to be 21 years old. I want Choi Won-jong to receive the death penalty," expressing her pain. She added, "For 11 months during the trial, I couldn't live normally, and our living expenses ran out," explaining that the payment for crime victim compensation could be a mitigating factor in favor of the perpetrator, hindering her from even applying.
At the first trial's conclusion, the prosecution demanded the death penalty, stating, "The defendant killed innocent citizens as if playing a game with a vehicle and a knife."
The court sentenced Choi Won-jong to life imprisonment and ordered him to wear an electronic monitoring device for 30 years.
The court pointed out that the defendant searched the terms 'Sillim-dong knife attack,' 'sashimi knife,' and 'mental state mitigation' on the internet just before committing the act, rejecting the defense's claim that he was in a state of insanity.
During the defendant examination, Choi Won-jong claimed, "The guards and prisoners are all bribed by the stalker organization," and in the appeals trial, he stated, "I appealed because the guard tormented me by preventing me from sleeping."
The second trial court also sentenced him to life imprisonment, while the Suwon High Court claimed, "The death penalty is warranted" and filed an appeal.
Choi Won-jong's side also submitted an appeal, but on November 20 of that year, the Supreme Court's 1st Department (Chief Justice Roh Kyung-pil) confirmed the original sentencing of life imprisonment and maintained the order for a 30-year electronic monitoring device attachment.
Choi Won-jong has become the youngest life prisoner in South Korea and is currently incarcerated at Anyang Correctional Facility. Previously, Jeong Yoo-jeong held the title of the youngest life prisoner.
Following this shocking incident, a law against carrying weapons in public places has been introduced as of March 2024.
If someone carries a weapon in public places like roads or parks without a valid reason and causes feelings of anxiety or fear, they may face up to 3 years in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won.
Image sources: The appearance of Choi Won-jong during his crime / Online Community, News1, The suspect Choi Won-jong, who caused the 'Seohyeon Station stabbing incident' resulting in 14 casualties, is being transported to the prosecution from the Sujeong Police Station in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. / News1, Father of the late Kim Hye-bin, victim of the Seohyeon Station stabbing incident / jtbc 'Newsroom', Chrysanthemums placed at the scene of the Seohyeon Station incident / News1, News1
