◇Capture of a video of the abortion process posted on the YouTube channel ‘Kkomjuk’.
In relation to an incident that shocked the public by posting the process of aborting a 36-week-old fetus (termination of pregnancy) on YouTube (reported on the Internet edition of this newspaper on August 12), the police issued an arrest warrant for the director and surgeon of the hospital where the surgery was performed. I applied.
According to the police, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency‘s criminal task force announced on the 22nd that it had applied for arrest warrants on charges of murder and other two people, including the director of the obstetrics and gynecology hospital that operated on A, a woman in her 20s who posted her abortion experience on YouTube, and the doctor who performed the surgery.
The interrogation of the suspects (warrant substantive examination) before their arrest is scheduled to be held at the Seoul Central District Court on the 23rd.
Previously, Ms. A, who lives in a rural area, posted a video on her YouTube channel on June 27th claiming that she had undergone an abortion at 36 weeks of pregnancy without knowing she was pregnant. Accordingly, the Ministry of Health and Welfare requested the police to investigate the doctor who operated on Mr. A.
The police are investigating a total of 9 people, including 6 medical staff, 1 YouTuber, and 2 patient placement brokers, in connection with this incident.
Mr. A was also charged with murder, and four other medical staff, including the hospital director and surgeon, were booked on charges of aiding and abetting murder. In addition, the hospital director was also charged with violating the medical law for not installing closed-circuit (CCTV) TV inside the hospital.
The police previously secured mobile phones, tablets, medical records, and other related data through search and seizure of hospitals, and have recently received consultation results from medical experts, including obstetricians and gynecologists at general hospitals, and are comprehensively analyzing them.
◇Capture of a video of the abortion process posted on the YouTube channel ‘Kkomjuk’.
Person A has already been investigated by the police twice and admitted to having had an abortion.
An official from the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, “We are analyzing the confiscated items, and we believe there was no manipulation of the YouTube video. We plan to quickly and strictly investigate those who participated in the surgery.”
As the Ministry of Health and Welfare requested an investigation on suspicion of murder, the police are currently investigating the two suspects on murder charges.
Regarding the survival of the fetus, the police confirmed that it is not currently alive through a search and seizure at the hospital.
The police are also looking into possible violations of medical law as CCTV is not installed inside the hospital.
An official from the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, “Since June of last year, with the revision of the Medical Service Act, hospitals that perform surgeries while the patient is unconscious, such as under general anesthesia, have been required to install CCTV inside the operating room. Failure to do so will result in a fine of up to 5 million won. However, even if there is CCTV, “Filming is only possible upon request from the patient or guardian,” he explained.
The police also plan to review the illegality and necessity of investigation into the online trading of the abortion drug ‘Mifgene’.
An official from the Seoul Metropolitan Government said, “We need to confirm the facts about the sales site,” and “We will determine the applicable law and review whether to conduct an investigation (internal investigation) before filing the case.”
