MIRYANG — A Cambodian man in his 30s who fatally stabbed a Cambodian man in his 20s outside a karaoke bar in Miryang, South Gyeongsang Province, was caught at Incheon International Airport while trying to flee to his home country. Police have found indications that some of those at the scene joined in the assault and are widening their investigation.
The South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency and the Miryang Police Station said on the 21st that they had arrested the man, identified as A, on an emergency basis on a murder charge and were questioning him. Police sought an arrest warrant for A on the 19th, and a pre-detention hearing was scheduled for the same day as the announcement.
According to police, A is accused of stabbing a Cambodian man identified as B several times with a knife he was carrying, killing him, during an altercation on a road outside a karaoke bar in Naei-dong, Miryang, at about 1:43 a.m. on the 18th.
Police believe the dispute began inside the bar and escalated into a street fight outside the building, where the stabbing took place. A disappeared immediately after the attack and traveled to Incheon International Airport by taxi and train in an attempt to flee the country. Police tracked him down and detained him in the departure waiting area at about 4:10 p.m. the same day, roughly 14 hours after the killing.
A admitted the allegations during police questioning and said he had acted on impulse after becoming enraged when B suddenly hit him, according to police. The two men were found to have met for the first time that day. Police confirmed that A was not staying in the country illegally.
Beyond A, police have found indications that some of the roughly 30 people at the scene took part in assaulting B and are expanding the investigation. The international crime investigation unit of the South Gyeongsang Provincial Police Agency is identifying and tracking Cambodian nationals suspected of taking part in a group assault on B.
With anxiety rising in the local community after the fatal stabbing, police have deployed additional officers around the scene and stepped up night patrols.