A suspect in his 40s on fraud charges who fled in handcuffs by taking advantage of a lapse in monitoring during a police arrest was caught again about 12 hours later.
According to the Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency on the 29th, a suspect, identified only as A, who was involved in a voice phishing-related crime, was arrested at a karaoke bar in Dalseong County, Daegu, at about 12:55 a.m. that day.
Earlier, A was arrested by police at about 12:50 p.m. the previous day at a dwellings in Nam District, Daegu. However, while police were searching inside the dwellings for criminal evidence and monitoring loosened, A took advantage of the lapse and fled the scene with both hands cuffed.
A is suspected of serving as a so-called "bankbook recruiter," who recruits bank accounts to be used in voice phishing crimes. At the time, police were reportedly conducting an operation to simultaneously arrest four to five bankbook recruiters like A across various parts of Daegu.
After confirming the suspect's escape, police analyzed nearby closed-circuit (CC) TV footage to track the route. They then deployed about 100 officers, including the detective mobile unit and frontline detectives, for an intensive search and secured A's custody about 12 hours after the escape.
A is said to have removed the handcuffs, which had been fastened on both wrists, without assistance during the escape.
An official at the Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency said, "We plan to conduct an internal investigation, including an audit, into how the suspect escaped," and added, "We will also continue investigating voice phishing-related crimes involving A, who has been apprehended."