Former Seoul Yongsan Police Chief Lee Im-jae sentenced to three years in prison for Itaewon massacre... ”The crowds were foreseeable” = South Korea

Lee Im-jae (54), former Seoul Yongsan Police Chief, who was on trial for allegedly insufficient response before and after the Itaewon tragedy, was sentenced to prison in the first trial.
On the 30th, the 11th Criminal Division of the Seoul Western District Court sentenced Lee, who was indicted on charges of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, to three years in prison. The court also ruled that Lee had given false testimony at a National Assembly hearing (National Assembly testimony).
The court found him not guilty of false witnesses and the creation and use of false public documents. The court said, "Taking into account media reports and police reports, it is believed that the 2022 Halloween holiday will be celebrated on Halloween Day.
"It was deemed possible to foresee that a large crowd would gather on the sloping alleys of Itaewon, where pedestrians would push and press against each other, posing a serious danger to the lives and bodies of pedestrians," the statement said.
Police Chief Lee Former said that on the day of the Itaewon tragedy, a large number of people gathered in the Itaewon area and it was possible to foresee the occurrence of a safety accident, but instead of taking measures to prevent the accident, measures such as deploying riot police and controlling roads were taken.
He was put on trial on suspicion of causing serious damage to human life by failing to take appropriate measures in a timely manner. He also instructed his staff not to accurately record the time of his arrival at the scene in order to hide his sloppy response.
He was charged with falsely testifying at a National Assembly hearing that he had learned of the disaster at a later date and that he had instructed the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency to request assistance from the riot police (National Assembly testimony).
He was also indicted on charges of professional negligence resulting in death and injury. Song Byung-ju (53), former head of the 112 Situation Room at Yongsan Police Station, who was indicted along with Lee on charges of professional negligence resulting in death and injury, was sentenced to two years in prison. Park, 112 Situation Chief,
The heads of the women's youth division, Jeong Hyun-Woo (54) and Choi-san (55), a police inspector in the public safety division, were both charged with false public documents.
The assistant was acquitted.