Learn All Crucial Facts About Reporting Crime In Korea
Is roaming around on the streets of Korea safe? Or that you don’t know about the emergency services? If you already know the emergency or non-emergency numbers, do you know what happens when you report a crime? This is what reporting crime in Korea will reveal.
Well, Korean police are very efficient in terms of providing instant help to those who report a crime, and in this space, we’ll fill you up with everything you need to know about reporting a crime in Korea.
A police emergency is when someone feels threatened or requires immediate police assistance.
The crimes that will come into the list of police emergencies include assaults, robbery, sexual harassment, and other street crimes.
Emergency and Non-emergency numbers
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In Korea, if you need police assistance first you need to make sure that you or the crime you are reporting is in an emergency or not.
For emergencies, the police helpline number is 112, and for the non-emergencies, you call on 182.
118 is another useful helpline number if you want to report an online crime. For reporting cyber activities, you can always refer to them.
You can search online for the list of all the helpline numbers of Korea.
What’s interesting is that you don’t need to mention your area code when you report a crime. While using a payphone, just press the ’emergency’ button and then dial the respective number. The nearest emergency facility will entertain your call.
Ask for a translator while reporting a crime in Korea
Request for a translator as soon as you call the above-mentioned numbers. This way, it will be convenient for you at the moment of panic to describe the details of the incident.
The good thing is, no matter what language you speak the required translator is always available.
The Korean Police Department has managed to hire versatile translators to cause you with ease.
Where are you?
Although, the police department will track you in an instant. If you provide inaccurate location details( which happens a lot) things could get difficult and complicated.
In a panic situation, always make sure to mention your name and location first because it gets easy for the police to send help as soon as possible.
Remember that the automatic location tracking service is not available for foreigners.
Foreigners tend to find it difficult to cope up with different addresses. That’s the reason the 112 operators provide the facility of video calling to track your location.
Moreover, you can send your pin location to the 112 operators via text as well.
If your call gets interrupted or disconnected, the police department will authorize the nearest police facility to send help as soon as possible.
How will you communicate?
you are required to directly come to the point and share all the necessary details with the operator.
Depict where, when, along with how you were entangled in a crime briefly.
A brief description of the appearance of the culprit and their location will be included in the details.
You are not required to provide any documentation and go through an identity check. If you want, your identity will remain hidden.
The Korean police have a ‘3 minutes response and dispatch’ strategy for emergency calls.
You’ll receive a text message instantly after you make your call. Also, you may receive a call from 112 operators as well.
How else you can do while reporting a crime in Korea?
You can report a crime simply by texting on 112. Korean police state that the text made in the Korean language will be responded to instantly.
Texts in other languages may take some extra time.
You can report a crime through the 112 mobile application as well. The application is available both on Google play store and Apple app store.
Many assistance centers are developed in Korea. Foreigners can report the crimes at these centers as well.
These are religious institutions that cater to foreigners only. Besides, these assistance centers made sure that foreigners don’t have to visit a police station.
In Korea, both tourist and non-tourist police operate. That doesn’t mean being a tourist you can’t ask non-tourist police for help! You can report a crime to any police officer.
Important things to consider to report a crime in Korea
First of all, stay calm. The operator knows that you are not in a good state when you call 911. Panic could result in disruptive communication. There are good chances the operator won’t understand what you are saying because of the distractions.
If you witness a crime, try not to touch anything at the crime scene and remain still. Besides, report the emergency to 112 and wait for help to arrive.
Don’t hesitate to report a crime even if you are facing immigration problems. The police of Korea won’t report any immigrants and will provide you with the same service. Moreover, It’s part of Korea’s human violation policy.
112 record your calls due to protection and other specialized reasons. However, your information remains hidden.
Psychological advising and support are also available for those in need.
