Police mull disclosing identity of teacher suspected of fatally stabbing 7-year-old girl

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Police mull disclosing identity of teacher suspected of fatally stabbing 7-year-old girl

Published: 11 Feb. 2025, 17:36 Updated: 11 Feb. 2025, 18:58

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A memorial altar for 7-year-old Kim Ha-neul, who was allegedly stabbed to death by a teacher, is set up at Konyang University Hospital in Daejeon on Feb. 11. [NEWS1]

Police said Tuesday they are reviewing whether to disclose the identity of a teacher accused of fatally stabbing a 7-year-old girl at an elementary school in Daejeon.

The police said they would consider convening a review committee after completing the necessary procedures, including obtaining consent from the victim’s family.

The victim, identified as 7-year-old Kim Ha-neul, was found unconscious in an audiovisual room on the second floor of the school in Daejeon’s Seo District on Monday. She was lying next to the suspect, a 48-year-old female teacher, according to police.

Kim suffered injuries to her shoulders, face and hands. She was taken to a hospital around 5:40 p.m. but was pronounced dead at around 7 p.m. Her memorial altar was set at Konyang University Hospital in Daejeon on Tuesday morning.

The teacher, who was found conscious with neck injuries, was also taken to a hospital and underwent surgery. According to police, she admitted to the crime before her surgery, saying she was "irritated" after the school's vice principal prohibited her from teaching.

She also told police she had been receiving treatment for depression since 2018. However, authorities said they needed to review her medical records to confirm what treatment and medication she had received.

The suspect claimed she had no specific target and that she had planned to die alongside a student. She told police, "It didn’t matter which child it was." She said she lured the victim into the audiovisual room by offering her a book, then choked and stabbed her. The police said they requested an autopsy for the 7-year-old, who had no prior connection to the suspect.

Police plan to question the teacher once she recovers, as doctors advised that she needs 48 hours of medical care. Investigators have also requested warrants for her formal arrest and to search her residence and electronic devices, including her phone and laptop.

A student mourns the death of 7-year-old Kim Ha-neul while placing flowers at an elementary school in Seo District, Daejeon, on Feb. 11. [NEWS1]

Speaking at a press briefing at Daejeon Seobu Police Precinct, precinct chief Yuk Jong-myeong said the victim’s mother reported her missing through the 112 hotline around 5:15 p.m. Monday. After 16 attempts to track Kim’s location, the child’s grandmother found her bag and the teacher in a locked supply storage room inside an audiovisual room.

Officers unlocked the room and discovered both the victim and the suspect. The audiovisual room is typically locked, with its keys kept in the teachers’ office, police said.

The suspect, who had recently returned to work after a less-than-a-month leave of absence in late December, was found to have purchased a knife from a store about two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the school, driving on her own, the police said.

Kim was the only student in the after-school care program that day, waiting for her art academy bus. The bus driver contacted the school around 4:30 p.m. when she did not appear. The school then called her parents at around 4:50 p.m., according to the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education.

The suspect had initially taken a six-month leave from her job on Dec. 9 due to depression but returned to work on Dec. 30 after her doctor deemed her capable of resuming normal activities. The education office said they are "obligated" to allow teachers to return within 30 days of request when they make one along with a medical certificate.

Just days before the attack, the suspect had a physical altercation with her colleague on Thursday, to which the education office advised the school to "separate her" from students. She reportedly twisted the arms of a fellow teacher.

Education Minister Lee Ju-ho speaks during a meeting at the government complex in Sejong on Feb. 11. [NEWS1]

The education office has designated a condolence period through Friday, closing the school for the rest of the week. Additionally, it said it would offer counseling support for students across the city.

The Korean Teachers and Education Workers' Union on Tuesday called for a "comprehensive investigation" into the case to ensure that "schools are safe for students."

The union’s Seoul branch also criticized the education office, saying the tragedy could have been prevented "if it had intervened more proactively."

On the same day, Education Minister Lee Ju-ho vowed to draw up "fundamental measures" to prevent such tragedies and announced plans to hold an emergency meeting with 17 education superintendents on Wednesday.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]