Burglary Syndicate Detained at Haeundae Police Station

[photo captured from Busan Haeunae Police Station]

No Cut Newsreported that a burglary syndicate which targeted mainly high-rise apartments around the country have been apprehended by the police. The suspects, who singled out and broke into empty apartments by climbing through the hallway windows into the veranda, have stolen a staggering 800 million won worth of money and valuables.

According to Yonhap News, Mr. Kim, 42, and three others were detained on March 25th at the Haeundae Police Station in Busan after being charged for breaking and entering and for stealing a large amount of money and valuables. Meanwhile, the Haeundae police have issued an arrest warrant for Mr. Park, 35, and three others for the sale of stolen goods.

The suspects were reported to have started colluding after they met in prison and are suspected to have broken into 350 houses, spanning across the country, from the capital city to Busan and Ulsan, and have stolen about 800 million won worth of money and valuables in total.

Investigations revealed that the suspects would ring the doorbells of high-rise apartments between 7 to 9 in the morning to verify that no one was home, after which one member of the team, whose height is above 180cm, would climb onto the veranda through the hallway window and enter the empty house.

Translated by Kaye Lam

Korean aid group dispatched to Japan

On the 14th of March, the 119 Rescue Team arrived in Japan to provide assistance to the country which was hit by a cataclysmic earthquake and tsunami that left thousands of causalities in its wake.

Yonhap News reported that the 119 Rescue Team, comprising of 106 team members and 2 rescue dogs, setup its base camp in the field of the General Sports Park, located in the vicinity of Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, the area hardest hit by the earthquake. The search for missing persons in the Sendai area began at 7a.m. on the morning of March 15, aided by rescue equipment such as endoscope cameras and corpse-detection systems.

According to SBS, the 119 Rescue Team has been working together with the Japanese police in their search for survivors around the extremely devastated Gamou area in Sendai.

Of the 12 times that the 119 Rescue Team was dispatched overseas, this was the first time that such a large team of more than 100 members was sent out.

Translated by Kaye Lam

Coast Guard helicopter crashes off Jeju coast, killing 5 maritime police officers

photo captured from YTN news

Kuki News reported that on the 23rd of February, at about 8:50p.m., an AW-139 helicopter belonging to the Southern Sea Coast Guard crashed into the sea 65km west of Jeju Island, killing all five of the maritime police officers on board.

The helicopter left Jeju Airport at 8:20p.m. to pick up two officers who had suddenly collapsed. The plane was on its way to Jeju University Hospital.

According to Yonhap News, the coast guards were briefed prior to take-off that the weather was clear, dismissing the possibility that the cause of the accident was related to bad weather conditions.

It was also revealed that the aircraft captain, Lieutenant Lee Byung-hoon, and vice-captain Lieutenant Kwon Beom-suk were very experienced helicopter pilots, thus ruling out inexperience as the cause of the accident.

Yonhap News also reported that unless the fuselage is found and the black box retrieved for analysis, further investigation into the accident to determine the actual cause of the AW-139 helicopter's crash will be difficult.

Translated by Kaye Lam

Gueummi Expected To Arrive At Mombasa, Kenya

According to MBS News, Geummi, the crabbing boat which was freed after being seized by Somali pirates, is expected to arrive at Kenya's Mombasa port tomorrow.

Andrew Mwangura, who provided assistance in negotiations with the pirates, said that he heard from the relevant Somali parties that US$50,000, or roughly 55 million won, was handed over to the pirates to cover the cost of fuel as well as the meals of the crew.

KBS News reported that last week the government said that two staff from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries were despatched on-site so that upon Geummi's arrival, they would be able to gain an accurate understanding of the circumstances surrounding its release.

Translated by Kaye Lam

Seoul Metro subways break down, causes delays

One of the trains on subway line #2 broke down this morning, January 18, during rush hour. The Seoul Metro stated, “Around 7 A.M., at Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Station, an inner circle train toward Euljiro station broke down with an unknown cause and stopped for 35 minutes,” reports Dailian. Seoul Metro is sending out documents verifying the delay for those who were late to work because of the breakdown.If a train stops more than 5 minutes due to train accidents or other reasons, the Seoul Metro sends out these documents.Seoul Metro is also sending out other documents that ensure a refund of the subway fare (1,000 won) within 7 days.

When the train stopped for 35 minutes, other trains also stopped running through Yeongdeungpo-gu Office Station and Hongik University Station.At 7:35 A.M., the train started to run again and Seoul Metro authorities discovered that a catenary became loose.When the catenary is loose, the correct amount of electricity does not flow to the train.

At about 8:20 A.M. at Gangbyeon Station, an inner circle train headed toward Sindorim station broke down and stopped.The train started to run again around 8:40 A.M.These two breakdowns caused passengers to experience inconvenience when transferring to other means of transportation and many people who were on the trains were late for work.