Police to beef up patrols, stop and searches in wake of back-to-back stabbing rampages

Police will beef up patrols and stop and search operations for suspicious people on the streets in the wake of back-to-back mass stabbings, the national police chief said Friday, declaring a “special policing” operation.

Fourteen people were wounded Thursday, with two in critical condition, after a man drove a car onto a pedestrian walkway and went on a stabbing rampage at a department store in Seongnam. The crime came two weeks after another stabbing spree that left one person dead and three others wounded at Seoul’s Sillim Station.

“I’m declaring a special police action to counter heinous crimes until the people’s anxiety is relieved,” said Yoon Hee-keun, commissioner general of the National Police Agency (NPA), in a statement to the nation.

“We will selectively stop and search those suspected of owning a weapon or people acting strangely according to the legal procedures,” the police chief said. He also ordered the police to actively use physical force, including the use of firearms or stun guns, in case of another stabbing rampage.

“We will utilize the maximum police force in public places, including local police, riot police teams and police detectives, to strengthen patrols and suppress the atmosphere for criminal activity,” the commissioner general said.

The police chief also said they will punish those who post threats to commit copycat crimes or spread fake news online “as severely as the law allows.”

The police will additionally cooperate with local governments and private security guards to make sure people are safe in their living spaces and have discussions with related institutions about expanding infrastructure to secure public order.