Fire-hit Bucheon factory stored flammables without sprinklers on-site

Flammable liquids stored at a Bucheon factory may have helped a fire spread rapidly Friday, fire authorities said. Eight people were injured, including six firefighters. The factory had no record of a permit to handle hazardous materials, though investigators have yet to determine whether the substances found there required one. Bucheon Fire Station said it found about 100 containers, each with a capacity of 20 liters, holding petroleum products and other Class IV hazardous materials. Their comb

2026-10-16 18:02:42:00

95% of life-sentence parolees had murder-related convictions

About 95 percent of prisoners serving life sentences who were paroled in South Korea over the past decade had been convicted of murder-related offenses, Justice Ministry data obtained by Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea showed. The figures come amid renewed debate over life imprisonment without parole. Current law allows those sentenced to life imprisonment to be considered for parole after 20 years, but authorities do not separately track reoffending among those releas

2026-10-16 15:55:03:00

Deported Thai man returns to Korea under new name, gets suspended sentence

A Thai man who changed his name to evade a permanent ban on entering South Korea has received a suspended prison sentence, a court said Friday. The Busan District Court sentenced the man, in his 40s, to one year in prison, suspended for three years, for violating the Immigration Act. He had been deported in April for overstaying his permitted period of stay and permanently barred from reentering Korea. About three months later, he changed his name, obtained a passport under the new name and retu

2026-10-16 15:48:13:00

Seven injured in Bucheon factory fire

Four firefighters were seriously injured, with one in cardiac arrest, while battling a major fire at a metal parts painting factory in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, on Friday, authorities said. The fire broke out at about 8:38 a.m. at a four-story factory in Nae-dong, Ojeong-gu, the Gyeonggi Fire and Disaster Headquarters said. Flammable liquids were reportedly stored inside the building. Firefighters rescued one person, while four others, including factory workers, evacuated on their own. The fir

2026-10-16 11:14:27:00

Army officer suspended for leaving post 64 times in 10 months to 'feed his lizard'

A court has upheld a two-month suspension imposed on an Army officer for repeatedly leaving his post without permission, verbally abusing soldiers and delaying approval of their leave. The Busan District Court said Thursday it has dismissed the officer’s lawsuit against his unit commander seeking to overturn the disciplinary action. Gate records showed the officer drove off the base 64 times during weekday working hours over 10 months without requesting leave or reporting his departures to a com

2026-10-15 16:43:05:00

International students lend rescue dogs a hand

Ten international students from different countries gathered at an animal shelter in Seoul on Monday to participate in a volunteer event to take care of dogs at a Seoul-based animal shelter. “I've been living in Korea for three years, and I've wanted to volunteer for a long time,” Arina Telpukova, 22, a Russian postgraduate student at Soongsil University, said at the event organized by the Seoul Global Center. Animals currently under protection at the center had arrived under various circumstanc

2026-10-15 13:12:23:00

“I got up within 0.5 seconds”: Uzbek doctor treats woman in shock on flight to Korea

When a cabin announcement asked, “Is there any doctor on board?” Kamilov Hasan Bakhriddinovich came to the aid of a woman in severe shock aboard a flight from Uzbekistan to Korea on Sunday. The 43-year-old Uzbek ear, nose and throat specialist recounted the emergency in an interview with The Korea Herald on Wednesday, after a post showing him treating the woman spread rapidly online. “I got up from my seat within 0.5 seconds,” Hasan, now in his 16th year as a doctor, said. “I knew that even a sm

2026-10-14 15:28:02:00

Supreme Court overturns sentence for shaman who killed niece during ritual

The Supreme Court overturned an appellate ruling that had sentenced an 81-year-old shaman to seven years in prison over her niece’s death, saying the possibility that the defendant intended to kill her should not have been ruled out. The court overturned the ruling against the woman, surnamed Sim, on Sept. 23 and sent the case back to the Seoul High Court, according to legal sources Wednesday. The High Court had reduced Sim’s sentence to seven years, finding that prosecutors had not proved she i

2026-10-14 11:44:53:00

Gov't wins W2.7b lawsuit to recover pro-Japanese collaborator's property

The Justice Ministry said Monday that it won a lawsuit to recover property and proceeds worth about 2.7 billion won ($2.01 million) from the descendants of Shin Woo-sun, a pro-Japanese collaborator during Japan's colonial rule of Korea. The Goyang branch of the Uijeongbu District Court ruled Thursday in favor of the government in a lawsuit over 14 plots of land in Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi Province, that Shin acquired through land assessments in 1913 and 1917. Shin's descendants sold 13

2026-10-13 18:14:28:00

Man with electronic monitoring device allegedly stabs 8 in Incheon Homeplus

A 59-year-old man was arrested after a knife attack at a Homeplus hypermarket in Incheon on Tuesday. Seven people were injured and one was reportedly in cardiac arrest, authorities said. According to the Incheon Namdong Police Station, the attack occurred at around 1:40 p.m. at a commercial complex housing Homeplus' Guwol branch in Namdong-gu, western Incheon. Police arrested the suspect at the scene and are investigating his motive and the circumstances of the attack. The suspect allegedly stab

2026-10-13 14:58:10:00