Man Slaps Passengers With A Slipper And Strangles Them When Asked To Wear A Mask On Subway
A Man On Seoul Metro Line 2 Refuses To Wear A Mask And Attacks Two Passengers By Strangling Them, Slapping Them With His Slipper And Throwing An Umbrella.
South Korea is currently in crisis from the third wave of the pandemic seeing three-digit numbers of confirmed cases daily.
The government has mandated wearing a mask on public transportation for all. Those who do not comply will be subject to fines and further prosecution according to the law.
Furthermore, drivers have the right to refuse to board passengers not wearing a mask and the police have promised to take strict responses to violations of quarantine regulations.
On August 27th at approxiamately 7:25 am, a male passenger not wearing a mask assaulted two passengers when they asked him to put on a mask on Seoul Metro line 2 passing through Dangsan Station.
The passenger, who seems to be in his 50s, took off his slipper and slapped two passengers, further strangled their necks, and punched them. He then picked up an umbrella and threw it at the passengers.
He can be seen trying to take another passenger's umbrella but she doesn't let go of it. He then picks up the original umbrella he threw at the passengers, but a man mediating the fight soon takes it away.
The assailant proceeds making a scene by kicking the subway door multiple times and suddenly charging at the passengers.
The blurred version of the video can be found on YouTube:
(*Graphic Content Warning)
<Source: YouTube @갬꽁>
Police arrested the assailant on the scene and upon interrogation he said that he got angry when told to wear a mask. He also said he's suffering from bipolar disorder.
The police have confirmed that it wasn't his first time assaulting people in a similar way.
According to the National Police Agency, this was the 6th case of arrests for assault due to not wearing a mask.
The police have received 385 assault cases related to disputes about wearing masks in public transit since May, 198 being prosecuted and 145 under investigation. 208 cases happened on buses, 130 on taxis and 47 on subway trains.
An official from the National Police Agency said, “The act of violating the quarantine regulations such as wearing a mask and exercising violence is a serious illegal act that threatens the safety of the nation. Persons who commit such crime will be arrested as an offender.”
<Source: 일요신문>
Another event of assault was seen on August 25th at around 10:00 pm, when a bus was passing through Jamsil Bridge. The driver was assaulted by a passenger in his 50s because he warned the passenger to put on a mask.
Again, drivers can refuse to board passengers who are not wearing a mask according to the law.
Seoul Songpa Police Station has issued an arrest warrant for the passenger.
