South Koreaโs Justice Ministry lowered the electronic-monitoring classification of Choi Chung-rak from high risk to intensive in January 2022, after reducing the share of monitored people placed in the highest-risk group from about 30% to roughly 15% amid staffing shortages. The ministry also cited his compliance with supervision and participation in addiction counseling and psychiatric and psychological treatment, while the officer responsible was supervising 18 people.
Choi was later booked by police for possessing a weapon, but his classification was not raised before the Incheon stabbing rampage. The number of monitored people rose from 4,316 in April 2022 to 5,301 in August 2026 as probation officers fell from 255 to 234, prompting calls for stronger police information-sharing and more specialized supervision.