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South Korean soldier accused of shooting rampage in standoff with army South Korean soldier accused of shooting rampage in standoff with army
(about 4 hours later)
The parents of a South Korean conscript soldier who killed five comrades in a grenade and gun attack have pleaded with him to surrender, after he exchanged fire with troops who had tracked him down near a school close to the North Korean border. South Korean troops are involved in a standoff with a soldier who shot dead five colleagues during a rampage near the heavily armed border with North Korea.
Late on Saturday night, the soldier threw a grenade and opened fire, killing five members of his unit and wounding seven others, at an outpost in the base at Goseong county, a mountainous region that borders North Korea on the eastern coast of the peninsula. The soldier, a 22-year-old army sergeant identified only by his surname, Lim, fled with his weapon after opening fire on fellow members of the 22nd infantry division in the border town of Goseong, Gangwon province, on Saturday night.
A manhunt went into full swing at daybreak, with helicopters sweeping the heavily forested hillsides and special forces took part in a search that, according to a colonel who briefed media, involved the equivalent of nine battalions. Yonhap news agency said Lim, who last year was diagnosed as requiring special attention due to mental health issues, had just ended his day shift when he hurled a grenade before opening fire with a semi-automatic K2 assault rifle, killing five colleagues and injuring another seven.
Discovered hiding near a school some six miles (10km) from the base, the soldier opened fire on troops, wounding a platoon leader in the arm, YTN television news channel reported. He remains surrounded. By Sunday, troops had cornered Lim near an elementary school about 10km from his guard post. Local media reports said gunfire had been exchanged; others said his parents had been taken to the scene but failed to persuade him to give himself up.
Troops had orders to "shoot to kill" unless the fugitive soldier surrendered, YTN reported, citing military officials. Lim, a conscript who was due to be discharged from the military this September, had been placed on a list of soldiers "who require special attention, as he had difficulties in adapting to military life", Yonhap said. The motive for the shooting is unclear.
The parents of the soldier, according to Yonhap news agency, were taken to the site on Sunday, where his mother pleaded with him to surrender as a standoff developed after the initial burst of gunfire. The 160-mile-long demilitarised zone [DMZ] separating South and North Korea is one of the most heavily fortified borders in the world. Tens of thousands of troops are lined up either side of the zone, which has separated the two countries since the end of the 1950-53 Korean war.
"I heard several gun shots for 10 minutes," Byun Sang-man, an 80-year-old farmer, told Reuters from the village. A posting to the border area is considered one of the toughest in the South Korean military, particularly for inexperienced conscripts, as it involves long shifts spent guarding remote outposts.
"We can't go outside … Soldiers have spread out all around our town. The headman told people this morning to stay inside through loudspeakers." All able-bodied South Korean men aged 18-35 are required by law to perform military service for up to two years.
A military official identified the soldier as Sgt Lim, and said he was due to be discharged on 16 September. Similar incidents have been blamed on bullying and mental health problems among soldiers. In 2011, four South Korean soldiers were killed when a 19-year-old marine stationed near the South's maritime border with the North opened fire on colleagues before trying to blow himself up with a grenade.
The official, who requested anonymity, described Lim as an "introvert" and said there had been earlier concerns over his psychological health, but he was deemed fit to be deployed to the outpost after passing a test in November. In 2005, an army private set off a grenade, killing eight soldiers as they slept. He told investigators he had been verbally abused by senior officers.
Yonhap news agency reported some details of the events at the base on Saturday night. Saturday's shooting, which occurred on the far eastern edge of the DMZ, sparked a massive manhunt involving several helicopters and thousands of troops.
"He first threw a grenade and then opened fire. He was returning after completing his day shift duty," Yonhap reported. Local people were told to stay indoors, while military units in the area raised their security alert to the highest level – reportedly to prevent Lim from harming civilians or defecting to North Korea.
"I heard several gunshots for 10 minutes," said Byun Sang-man, an 80-year-old farmer from the village where the standoff took place. "We can't go outside … soldiers have spread out all around our town."
The Korea Herald said Lim underwent a personality test in 2013 that declared him at risk of committing suicide or causing other incidents and was not, therefore, fit to serve at a heavily guarded outpost. But he was passed fit for outpost duty after another test in November, South Korean media said.
The defence ministry apologised for the shooting and promised a full investigation. "We are deeply sorry for causing concern to the public," ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told reporters in Seoul. "We pray for the sacrificed soldiers and extend our condolences to the bereaved families, and will do our best to support them."