Human Leg Found at Recycling Center Traced to Nursing Hospital; Questions Raised Over Amputation Procedure

[Anchor]

A human leg part discovered at a recycling center in Incheon last week has been identified as belonging to a patient at a nursing hospital. While it is a relief that this was not a violent crime such as murder, the police are investigating whether any laws were violated in the process of the patient's leg being amputated and discarded.

Reporter Bae Seong-jae has the story.

[Reporter]

The human leg part found at a recycling center in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, on the afternoon of June 10 has been confirmed to belong to a patient in her 80s hospitalized at a nursing facility about 25 kilometers away.

The hospital voluntarily reported the incident, and the police have received a verbal opinion from the National Forensic Service confirming that the DNA matches.

The hospital reportedly stated to the police that they had amputated the necrotic leg of the female patient in her 80s and placed it in a designated medical waste container, but a cleaning staff member mistakenly disposed of it incorrectly.

Based on the National Forensic Service's initial assessment that the body part belonged to a "female between 161 and 165 cm tall," the police had formed an investigation team of about 100 officers and had been tracking the case for a week.

In particular, because the foot size was approximately 210 mm, there was speculation that it could belong to a young student, causing a stir as the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education and local schools scrambled to check on students with long-term absences.

While it has been confirmed that this was not a violent crime, the police have launched an investigation into the circumstances under which the hospital amputated and disposed of the patient's leg.

Questions are being raised, particularly because the nursing hospital does not have a dedicated operating room, leading to confusion over how the amputation was performed.

[Hospital Representative: We do not have an operating room. We can tell you that much, but we cannot provide any further details beyond that.]

Separate from the police investigation, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has also begun verifying the facts to determine if there were any violations of the Medical Service Act.

Reported by Lee Sang-hak | Video by Jo Mu-hwan | Graphics by Lee Jong-jung | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.