A suspect is seen on closed-circuit television footage from the second-floor restaurant area of a large commercial complex in Namdong-gu, Incheon, where a man in his 50s went on a stabbing rampage Tuesday, injuring eight people. [Yonhap]
A suspect is seen on closed-circuit television footage from the second-floor restaurant area of a large commercial complex in Namdong-gu, Incheon, where a man in his 50s went on a stabbing rampage Tuesday, injuring eight people. [Yonhap]

A broadcaster on the streaming platform Soop has apologized after drawing backlash for comparing the perpetrator of the Incheon Guwol-dong stabbing rampage to a video game character.

Game streamer Im A-ni posted an apology on her Soop channel early Wednesday, saying she had learned of the incident during a live broadcast and made the mistake of likening the attacker to a Zealot — a character from the game StarCraft. "Regardless of my intent, it was entirely my fault," she said. "I again apologize to the victims and those around them."

She said she had initially failed to grasp the gravity of the situation and acknowledged that her subsequent responses had been emotional and made things worse. "I felt I needed to apologize before going live again, even though my thoughts were not properly organized, and I am also sorry for apologizing in an inappropriate manner and attire," she added.

During her Tuesday broadcast, Im had described the attack by saying the suspect "taped knives to both arms and rode the escalator like a Zealot, stabbing 20 people." A Zealot is a combat unit in the real-time strategy game StarCraft that attacks with blades attached to both arms.

When viewers criticized the comparison as inappropriate, Im reportedly responded defensively, asking "Why is that a problem?" and telling critics to simply leave her stream.

In her apology, Im said she would "deeply reflect on my carelessness and take responsibility, recognizing the weight of every word as a streamer," and pledged to think more carefully before speaking on any matter in the future.

The stabbing occurred around 1:40 p.m. Tuesday at a large commercial complex in Guwol-dong, Namdong-gu, Incheon. A woman in her 20s was rushed to a hospital in cardiac arrest and underwent surgery, while seven other men and women ranging from their 20s to their 50s were injured and are receiving treatment. Including one person whose clothing was torn during a threatening encounter with the suspect, the total number of victims stands at nine.

The suspect, identified only as A and aged 59, allegedly taped knives to both hands before attacking bystanders. He had previously served a four-year prison sentence on charges of attempting to kill his ex-wife and was wearing an electronic ankle monitor at the time of the attack.


betterj@heraldcorp.com