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| ▲ This photo, provided by Paju Police Station, shows an army soldier who was arrested for threatening drivers with a knife in an attempt to steal their car on Oct. 27, 2023. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
(2nd LD) soldier stabbing-police
(2nd LD) Soldier arrested for brandishing knife in attempt to hijack car in Paju
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PAJU, South Korea, Oct. 27 (Yonhap) -- An army soldier on Friday stormed out of an armored vehicle on the way back to his unit following an exercise and brandished a military knife at the drivers of nearby cars in a hijacking attempt in Paju, northwest of Seoul, police said.
The soldier, whose identity was withheld, was arrested at the scene and is under investigation.
Police received a 112 emergency call at around 9 a.m. saying a soldier jumped off an armored vehicle and suddenly started wielding a hand knife at nearby people in Paju.
Armored vehicles carrying soldiers were on their way back to the unit after completing an annual Hoguk defense exercise, according to police and military authorities.
The soldier in his 20s abruptly jumped off the vehicle while they were stuck in traffic, approached the cars pulled over to the side of the road, and threatened the drivers to hand over their car keys to him before he was subdued by a military personnel and handed over to the police.
The incident left one driver injured, and some cars had a minor collision while trying to avoid the scene.
Police said they referred the suspect to the military police at 12:40 p.m. after questioning him.
The Army identified the suspect only as a corporal, saying he was in the area for an exercise. It said an investigation is under way in coordination with the police, and vowed to take "stern" measures based on its results.
"It is regrettable this incident occurred during an exercise," it said in a statement. "We express deep sympathy to the victim and we will take an active interest in their treatment."
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