Gwangju: Police concluded Thursday that a police officer who shot and killed a knife-wielding man while on duty in the southwestern city of Gwangju last month had acted in self-defense.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the officer from the Gwangju Dongbu Police Station was first stabbed twice by the 51-year-old knife attacker before shooting him dead with live bullets during a scuffle in downtown Gwangju on February 26. The officer, who sustained serious injuries to his neck and face, was called to the scene in response to a 112 emergency call from two women threatened by the attacker.
The Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency reported it has closed the fatal accident case and acquitted the officer after determining that he lawfully used his firearm in the death of the attacker. The agency stated the officer's use of the firearm was appropriate, given that the deceased man continued to attack with a deadly weapon from a close range of less than one meter despite multiple warnings and orders to surrender.