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U.S. troops stationed in Korea were reportedly involved in 780 criminal acts, three of them homicides, between 2000 and August 2005, yet not a single one of them has been brought to book here, Seoul Metropolitan Police data show. Statistics announced on Monday by Democratic Labor Party lawmaker Lee Young-soon during an audit of the police show U.S. Forces Korea personnel implicated in three murders, 19 robberies, 149 thefts and other illegal activities, but none were in police custody.
After two middle school students were killed by a U.S. armored vehicle in 2002, the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) was revised to make it obligatory for a U.S. government representative to report within one hour of a U.S. soldier being arrested, but this did little to improve the way investigations were conducted. Rather, Lee said, it seemed only to increase the speed with which suspects were turned over to U.S. authorities.
"Police do not even start questioning suspects before they are officially handed over to the U.S. because they claim there are no interpreters, while U.S. representatives are only concerned with taking custody of the suspect rather than to cooperating with the investigation,Ħħ Lee said. She urged police to be aware of SOFA guidelines on dealing with suspects and take a more active part in the initial investigation. Lee proposed creating a department that would handle all USFK-related business and boost police personnel in areas where U.S. forces are concentrated and crimes are frequent.
U.S. soldiers also have a record of not paying traffic fines. According to police data, they paid only some 53.2 percent of their fines last year, and a poor 36.6 percent through July this year.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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