Acting President Choi Sang-mok visits Kim Ha-neul's funeral at Konyang University Hospital in Daejeon, Wednesday. Yonhap
The father of a 7-year-old who was stabbed to death by a teacher at a school in Daejeon has called for strong punishment against the killer.
Speaking to reporters at the funeral of his daughter, Kim Ha-neul, on Wednesday, the father said he believes the teacher, in her 40s, committed a premeditated act of murder when she brutally killed the girl with a knife at an elementary school in the city two days ago.
“There should be a strong punishment … This is why we eventually agreed to a suggestion to conduct an autopsy on her body,” her father said. “What fears and worries me most now is the possibility that the suspect may end up receiving a lenient penalty because (of her claim that) she was mentally unstable at the time.”
But the fact that the suspect had purchased the knife just hours before the killing and lured Kim into a specific location for the attack suggests that it was a carefully planned murder, he said.
His remarks came as the National Forensic Service confirmed that the girl died from multiple injuries caused by sharp objects. She was found with dozens of stab wounds, including those left on both her hands — a sign that the victim resisted.
Meanwhile, police searched the woman's home and car while looking into her mobile phone as well as medical records. They plan to detain her as soon as her condition becomes stable enough for questioning.
According to police, the suspect was looking for a child to target randomly. She said she had planned to attack the last student coming out of the classroom, and Kim was, unfortunately, the last one to leave that day. The suspect also claimed she planned to commit suicide afterward.
But that last part of her claim may well be a lie, according to the bereaved family. When the suspect was found by police in the audiovisual room on the second floor of the school, she had self-inflicted injuries. But when she was found first by Kim's grandmother, just before the police raid, there were no signs of self-harm, her father said.
Police are also looking into whether her choice of place for her alleged murder had anything to do with the fact that it was insulated against noise.
According to police and regional education authorities, the teacher took a leave of absence for 20 days from Dec. 9, over symptoms of depression. Before this, she was found to have taken some 200 days off for medical reasons since October 2021.
Mourners place flowers at the fence of the school in memory of Kim Ha-neul in Daejeon, Wednesday, after the 7-year-old was killed by a teacher two days ago. Newsis
The killing shocked the country and prompted political calls for measures to prevent similar tragedies. Both the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) have promised legislation efforts to make schools more safe for children.
“I offer my deep condolences after the tragic death of Kim Ha-neul … I still can't believe how such a thing could happen,” Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, the PPP's floor leader, said during a meeting at the National Assembly. “We consider this incident to be a serious threat to the lives and safety of our children, who are our future.”
Some major figures from both parties, including Rep. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the DPK, and Kwon Young-se, the PPP's interim leader, canceled their Wednesday afternoon schedules to visit her funeral in Daejeon.
Acting President Choi Sang-mok also went there to console Kim's family. His visit came after impeached and incarcerated President Yoon Suk Yeol sent his condolences through his lawyers.
After holding an emergency meeting with superintendents of education, Education Minister Lee Ju-ho vowed to get to the bottom of the case and come up with an effective solution in cooperation with lawmakers.