Woo Bum-kon
| Woo Bum-kon | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
Woo Bum-kon February 24, 1955 Pusan, South Gyeongsang, South Korea |
| Died | April 27, 1982 (aged 27) Uiryeong, South Korea |
| Cause of death | Suicide |
| Occupation | Police officer |
| Killings | |
| Date | April 26 – 27, 1982 c. 9:30 p.m. – 3:40 a.m. |
| Location(s) | Uiryeong, South Korea |
| Killed | 57 (including himself) |
| Injured | 35 |
| Weapons | Two M2 carbines Seven hand grenades |
| Woo Bum-kon | |
| Hangul | 우범곤 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | 禹範坤 |
| Revised Romanization | U Beom-gon |
| McCune–Reischauer | U Pǒmgon |
Woo Bum-kon (or Wou Bom-kon (February 24, 1955 – April 27, 1982) was a South Korean policeman and spree killer who killed 56 people and wounded 35 others in several villages in Uiryeong County, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, during the night from April 26 to April 27, 1982, before committing suicide.
His rampage remained the deadliest known mass murder committed by a lone gunman in modern history until the Norway attacks of July 22, 2011, and was the deadliest mass killing in modern South Korean history until the Daegu subway fire.
Woo had served in the South Korean marines until 1978. In December 1980, he was hired by the National Police in Pusan and settled in the village of Torongni in December 1981, after being transferred to the local police station in Kungyu.
Woo had an argument with his live-in girlfriend, Chun Mal-soon (전말순), on the afternoon of April 26, 1982, after she had woken him by swatting a fly on his chest. Enraged, he left the house and went to the police station, where he reported for duty at 4:00 p.m. According to early reports, he began drinking heavily, though eyewitnesses later stated that Woo did not appear drunk during his rampage, and according to local officials, he would have been unable to cover 4 km of difficult, rocky terrain while intoxicated.
At about 7:30 p.m., Woo returned home, punched and kicked his girlfriend and smashed the furniture, before making his way to the reservists' armory and gathered several weapons, consisting of two M2 carbines, 144 or 180 rounds of ammunition, and seven hand grenades. Some reports stated that the other officers were at a meeting, and he therefore managed to grab the weapons unnoticed, though others mentioned that he had intimidated the guards to gain access.
At approximately 9:30 p.m., Woo shot his first victim and entered the local post office, where he killed three phone operators and cut off the telephone lines. He next went to Torongni, where he threw a grenade and shot at passers-by in the marketplace, killing six people. He also wounded Chun Mal-soon, who had gone to investigate after hearing shots in the village. From that point on, he proceeded from village to village, taking advantage of his position as a police officer to gain entry to the houses and shoot their inhabitants.
...
Wikipedia