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Listened to podcast regarding the death of Bill Kapoun
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Adventurer



Joined: 28 Jan 2006

PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2010 4:25 pm    Post subject: Listened to podcast regarding the death of Bill Kapoun Reply with quote

It seemed weird that there was some flammable liquid on the floor, and there was supposedly no evidence that the fire department came to put out the fire according to the parents, and the police didn't really investigate, and when asked about that, the police said his body would have to remain. That sounds so unreal. He also didn't have health insurance and supposedly got cheated several times by bosses while being in Korea. I don't know all the details.
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itaewonguy



Joined: 25 Mar 2003

PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2010 4:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

how about some more information about the guy?
is he the New Zealander who who died here last week?
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definitely maybe



Joined: 16 Feb 2008

PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2010 5:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

itaewonguy wrote:
how about some more information about the guy?
is he the New Zealander who who died here last week?


For a guy with Itaewon in his title, you sure missed a big deal in the area a year or two ago! Bill's the Canadian teacher who died due to a fire up in HBC.
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Jane



Joined: 01 Feb 2003

PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2010 6:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

itaewonguy wrote:
how about some more information about the guy?
is he the New Zealander who who died here last week?


As far as I know, the guy from New Zealand who died last week was an elementary school teacher back home, whose minibus crashed on the way from Incheon airport into Seoul. Really sad story.
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Adventurer



Joined: 28 Jan 2006

PostPosted: Sat May 08, 2010 10:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

definitely maybe wrote:
itaewonguy wrote:
how about some more information about the guy?
is he the New Zealander who who died here last week?


For a guy with Itaewon in his title, you sure missed a big deal in the area a year or two ago! Bill's the Canadian teacher who died due to a fire up in HBC.


Bill was an American. He was dating a Korean woman. He died in a suspicious fire, which was never investigated. There was a flammable liquid, for some reason, under the couch in the apartment. No one knows why. No one is sure if it was a hate crime or what happened. The parents had trouble getting his body out without coughing up some money. He didn't have health insurance and was hood-winked by more than one employer in Korea. In the PODCAST, it talked about how a South African was given a fake insurance card by a hagwon and then had no coverage.
Then, the hagwon tried to erase evidence that she worked there. No one from Bill Kapoun's school wen to the hospital. The police didn't even investigate.
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Wishmaster



Joined: 06 Feb 2003

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 2:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wow, Itaewon, you've been in Korea for like 10 years or something and a regular on this forum, and you never even heard about this guy? Shocked

Yeah, it could definitely be a cover-up. Korea loves to do that about its problems. Can't show Korea in a negative light, right? I mean, if a Korean ever did something like cause the death of a foreigner, then that would detract from the Victimhood mantra. Korea is always the victim, you know. Never the perpetrator. Well, that's what they want the world to think anyway. Of course, we all know better.
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PatrickGHBusan



Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 2:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kind of a shame that some people will use this tragic death to bash all of Korea.

The death was highly suspicious. The details of it however are NOT public property, they are for the police, fire department and the family of the deceased. Sharing them to a wider audience is not mandatory nor should it be.

Maybe the family does not care to share the intimate details of the death of their loved one?

Perhaps the investigation is still ongoing?

It is possible the death was through foul play and in fact it looks like that. But why rehash this now?
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carleverson



Joined: 04 Dec 2009

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 3:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Adventurer wrote:
definitely maybe wrote:
itaewonguy wrote:
how about some more information about the guy?
is he the New Zealander who who died here last week?


For a guy with Itaewon in his title, you sure missed a big deal in the area a year or two ago! Bill's the Canadian teacher who died due to a fire up in HBC.


Bill was an American. He was dating a Korean woman. He died in a suspicious fire, which was never investigated. There was a flammable liquid, for some reason, under the couch in the apartment. No one knows why. No one is sure if it was a hate crime or what happened. The parents had trouble getting his body out without coughing up some money. He didn't have health insurance and was hood-winked by more than one employer in Korea. In the PODCAST, it talked about how a South African was given a fake insurance card by a hagwon and then had no coverage.
Then, the hagwon tried to erase evidence that she worked there. No one from Bill Kapoun's school wen to the hospital. The police didn't even investigate.


Maybe the flammable liquid was high proof liquor he was drinking? Maybe he was smoking while he got drunk and caused his own death?

Maybe another foreigner set his house on fire?

We simply don't know what happened.

Due to the lack of information, I doubt we'll ever know what really happen.
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thomas pars



Joined: 29 Jan 2009

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 4:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you are a foreigner here. especially an english teacher and something
horrible happens to you. You can be certain that it will never be
properly investigated. I mean imagine if it turned out that the fire was a hate
crime. Can you imagine the hit that the ESL industry would take?
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Smee



Joined: 24 Dec 2004
Location: Jeollanam-do

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 7:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Here's the link to the podcast for anyone who's interested:

http://www.seoulpodcast.com/archives/601

Interview with Bill's mother, with Stephannie White as a guest panelist.

A few other cases of suspicious and uninvestigated deaths:

American dies after day in police custody: http://briandeutsch.blogspot.com/2008/03/almost-kind-of-strange-coincidence.html

Teacher murdered at school: http://populargusts.blogspot.com/2009/05/murder-of-english-teacher-11-years-ago.html

14-year-old American dies in Gyeongsan sauna: http://www.mightiemike.com/
http://briandeutsch.blogspot.com/2009/08/stephannie-white-loses-court-case-over.html
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Jeonmunka



Joined: 05 Oct 2009

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 9:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

At the time I read there may have been cooking at their place and then people fell asleep. It isn't hard to do if you have had a few drinks. Then, the smoke gets you. It is a large cause of death in fires that the carbon monoxide takes people when they are asleep. They never wake up.

It is very, very hard to imagine an employer doing what is suggested - the simple reason is that if an employer wanted to get rid of a foreign teacher employee s/he would simply fire him or do a dirty deed another way - I find it very hard to belive that someone would kill him over such employment matters.

IMHO
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madoka



Joined: 27 Mar 2008

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 9:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Wishmaster wrote:

Yeah, it could definitely be a cover-up. Korea loves to do that about its problems. Can't show Korea in a negative light, right? I mean, if a Korean ever did something like cause the death of a foreigner, then that would detract from the Victimhood mantra. Korea is always the victim, you know. Never the perpetrator. Well, that's what they want the world to think anyway. Of course, we all know better.


Well everyone knows the biggest victims on the planet are NETs working in Korea:

- Oatmeal is $2 more than in the U.S. That's racist! Waaaaa!

- A Korean stared at me today! Waaaaaa!

- A taxi didn't want to pick me up because I was drunk! Waaaa!

- I sent in bunch of resumes, but no one has hired me! Waaaa!

- Some kids had the nerve to say hi to me! Waaaaa!

- I think somebody gave me a dirty look for drinking on the subway. That's racist! Waaaa!

- My co-workers took me out to lunch, but I had to sit on the ground! Waaaa!

- The employees at the store couldn't speak English. Waaa!
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madoka



Joined: 27 Mar 2008

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 9:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jeonmunka wrote:
At the time I read there may have been cooking at their place and then people fell asleep. It isn't hard to do if you have had a few drinks. Then, the smoke gets you. It is a large cause of death in fires that the carbon monoxide takes people when they are asleep. They never wake up.

It is very, very hard to imagine an employer doing what is suggested - the simple reason is that if an employer wanted to get rid of a foreign teacher employee s/he would simply fire him or do a dirty deed another way - I find it very hard to belive that someone would kill him over such employment matters.


Nah, that's way too reasonable and smacks of common sense. This is a great opportunity for blaming the racist Koreans. Some mustache twirling hagwon owner is definitely to blame. He broke into the apartment, poured gasoline all over (you know, the non-smelly kind so the occupants wouldn't notice), then set a small explosive device and risked the lives of everyone else in the building. All to save the hassle of paying his employee. Or perhaps as revenge for daring to date a Korean. Rolling Eyes

If anything, the Koreans are to blame for not enforcing the mental health requirements for NETs. They let in any paranoid kook to teach their kids.
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Wishmaster



Joined: 06 Feb 2003

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 9:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well, if you are indeed working here, then I guess the mental health requirements weren't quite stringent enough.
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Ginormousaurus



Joined: 27 Jul 2006
Location: 700 Ft. Pulpit

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 1:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Adventurer wrote:
There was a flammable liquid, for some reason, under the couch in the apartment.


and you are implying that "for some reason" must mean what?

i'm not trying to make light of the situation, but what is your justification for implying that there was malice involved? i mean no disrespect, adventurer, but it sounds like you are drumming up conspiracy where none exists.
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