May 20, 2025
SEOUL – Myeong Jae-wan, the 48-year-old elementary school teacher accused of murdering a 1st-grader at school, has been officially dismissed by the education authorities, a local media outlet reported Monday.
According to the Korean-language daily Herald Business, the Daejeon Metropolitan Office of Education confirmed Myeong’s dismissal, the highest level of disciplinary action for government employees, at a disciplinary committee meeting on May 8. She purportedly did not challenge the decision.
Myeong is the suspect in the shocking murder of 7-year-old Kim Ha-neul at an elementary school in Daejeon on Feb. 10. She allegedly lured the victim to an empty classroom and stabbed her to death. Myeong then inflicted injuries on herself with an apparent intent to kill herself.
Despite her dismissal as a teacher, Myeong’s career of 20-plus years makes her eligible to receive a retirement pension as stipulated by the Public Officials Pension Act. It states that dismissed public officials, which includes elementary school teachers, can have their pension cut by 50 percent, but only those convicted of crimes against the state are to have their entire pension revoked.
Myeong, under physical detention, is currently undergoing criminal trial, with her first hearing slated for 10 a.m. on May 26.
The victim’s family has filed a civil suit seeking compensation worth 410 million won ($293,000) against Myeong, the school’s principal and the metropolitan government of Daejeon. They held the parties responsible for failing to stop Myeong’s crime, saying the principal in particular should have taken measures after the suspect exhibited erratic behaviors, such as assaulting a colleague.