'She would still be here': Father expresses regret after 7-year-old daughter killed in school stabbing

Home > National > Social Affairs

'She would still be here': Father expresses regret after 7-year-old daughter killed in school stabbing

Published: 11 Feb. 2025, 18:57 Updated: 11 Feb. 2025, 18:59

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Friends of Kim Ha-neul, a 7-year-old girl who was allegedly stabbed to death by a teacher, visit her memorial altar at Konyang University Hospital in Daejeon on Feb. 11. [NEWS1]

“I can’t believe this happened. She sent me off to work just yesterday morning,” said the father of Kim Ha-neul, the 7-year-old girl who was allegedly stabbed to death by a teacher at her school in Daejeon.

“An unthinkable tragedy happened at school — the very place that should be the safest,” the 38-year-old father said in grief and anger as he spoke in an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo on Tuesday, an affiliate of the Korea JoongAng Daily.

He suspected that the 48-year-old female teacher had “carefully premeditated” the crime and struggled to accept that his own daughter was the victim.

“Ha-neul was always so thoughtful,” he said. “She cheered us on since both my wife and I work. She got along well with her friends, took care of her younger sibling and never caused any trouble.”

Kim’s parents had recently decided to enroll her in an art hagwon, or a private cram school, as they were both busy with their work during the day. Monday was only her second time attending the new academy.

She attended the art cram school three times a week — on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays — but had to stay in an after-school care program until her art academy bus arrived at around 4:40 p.m. On Tuesdays and Fridays, her grandmother picked her up from school.

“When we decided for her to attend the art academy, she reassured my wife and me, telling us not to worry,” the father said. “If only we hadn’t sent her there," her father said in tears, "she would still be here today.”

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]

He said he believed the teacher had planned the crime in advance, knowing which students were enrolled in the after-school care program.

“My daughter told me she was with a friend until 4:20 p.m.,” he said. "She was alone for about 20 to 30 minutes after that."

The teacher in charge of the care program had allowed Kim to leave the classroom once the academy bus arrived. Though the 48-year-old suspect was not responsible for the program, she would have known Kim was left alone, the father said.

At around 4:40 p.m. on Monday, the academy bus driver contacted the school, as Kim did not show up. About 10 minutes later, the driver informed the academy and her parents.

The father suspected the assailant lured his daughter to the audiovisual room on the second floor as she was sent from the after-school care program to the academy bus.

According to the father, he was able to hear noises near Kim’s phone through a “child protection application” that shared her location and captured surrounding sounds.

“At 4:55 p.m., I checked the app to see what was going on, but I couldn’t hear her voice,” he recalled. “All I could hear was heavy panting, like an old woman sprinting 100 meters, the sounds of cabinets opening and closing and a zipper being undone.”

He also suspected that the teacher had tried to silence the phone alarm, as the app’s alert had gone off.

Kim’s family reported her missing to the police at around 5:15 p.m.

Her grandmother was the first to find her in a supply storage room inside the school's audiovisual room. She saw Kim’s bag, water bottle and blood — along with the teacher.

When the grandmother asked where her granddaughter was, the teacher replied, “She’s not here. I don’t know,” the father said.

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]

According to police, the suspect had taken a leave of absence due to depression on Dec. 9 but returned to work in late December.

“If her depression was severe, she should have been restricted from duty,” the father said.

“And if the after-school care teacher had properly ensured my daughter made it safely downstairs, this wouldn’t have happened," he said, further criticizing the school’s slow response in locating Kim.

"Ha-neul, who was smiling brightly in front of the elevator just yesterday morning, became a star in the sky that evening," he said.

"Measures must be improved to ensure that no other tragedy like hers takes place."

BY CHOI JONG-KWON, CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]