South Korean court hands out three jail terms, one of them suspended, to officers for professional negligence after 159 mostly young people died

A South Korean court has given three police officers prison sentences over their handling of a 2022 Halloween crush in a Seoul nightlife district that killed 159 people.

The convictions on Monday are the first over the failure by authorities to prevent or adequately respond to the overcrowding that occurred in the popular Itaewon district. No top-level officials have been charged or held accountable, prompting criticism from bereaved families and opposition politicians.

Pair are first police officials to be sentenced over 2022 disaster in which nearly 160 people died

A South Korean court has sentenced two former senior police officers for destroying evidence linked to Seoul’s deadly 2022 Halloween crush.

Tens of thousands of people, mostly in their 20s and 30s, had been out on 29 October 2022 to enjoy the first post-pandemic holiday celebrations in the popular Itaewon nightlife district. The night turned deadly when crowds poured into a narrow, sloping alleyway between bars and clubs, leading to nearly 160 people being crushed to death.

Law enforcement concedes insufficient planning as president belatedly expresses regret for disaster

Thousands of people gathered near Seoul’s city hall on Saturday to commemorate the 156 people killed in a Halloween crowd crush in Itaewon last weekend.

Christian and Buddhist leaders spoke on stage, demanding President Yoon Suk-yeol step down and asking how the country could mourn without knowing the truth behind the deaths.

Shops closed and concerts cancelled after Halloween party surge kills more than 150 people, as questions raised over crowd control

• ‘I don’t know how to live’: grief over loved ones lost in Seoul’s deadly Halloween crowd crush

South Korean authorities have opened an investigation into the deaths of more than 150 people, in a crush in a nightlife district in Seoul on Saturday as experts said crowd controls could have reduced the surge that led to the disaster.

It remained unclear what led the huge Halloween party crowd to head into a narrow alley in the Itaewon area. Witnesses said people fell on each other “like dominoes”, and some victims were bleeding from their noses and mouths while being given CPR.

More than 150 people were killed as mostly young people flooded the narrow, sloping streets of Itaewon to celebrate Halloween

• ‘I don’t know how to live’: grief over loved ones lost in Seoul’s deadly Halloween crowd crush

On Saturday night, tens of thousands of mostly young people flocked to Itaewon in Seoul to celebrate Halloween.

Images of Itaewon subway station before the tragedy show large crowds gathering in the area, known for its nightlife, bars and restaurants.