Shin Chang-won's prison pencil listed for sale on Karrot

A mechanical pencil said to have belonged to Shin Chang-won, one of South Korea's most notorious escaped convicts, has been listed for sale on a secondhand trading platform, drawing widespread attention online.

The listing appeared Thursday on Karrot and Bungaejangter under the title "Rare item — belongings of legendary escapee Shin Chang-won."

The seller, identified only as User A and based in Seo-gu, Daejeon, set a listed price of 999,999 won ($747) but structured the sale as an auction, inviting prospective buyers to submit their own offers first.

Photos attached to the post show a blue mechanical pencil and a matching lead case placed side by side. Printed on both items are the words "Cheongsong No. 2 Prison," "170 Shin Chang-won," "arts supplies permit," "March 29, 2010," "head of social rehabilitation," and "2.0 lead 2B." A red official stamp mark is also visible.

The label appears to be the standard permit tag affixed to writing supplies approved for use by inmates inside the prison. The number "170" is believed to be Shin's inmate registration number.

User A wrote that the pencil belonged to "Shin Chang-won, South Korea's legendary escapee," adding that they came to care for him by chance during what they described as a suicide attempt in May 2023 and received the item as a keepsake.

The "May 2023 incident" User A referenced appears to refer to an episode on May 21 of that year in which Shin attempted to take his own life at Daejeon Prison and was transferred to a hospital.

A prison officer on patrol discovered Shin and he was transported to a hospital, where his condition was not life-threatening. However, it has not been confirmed whether User A actually provided care for Shin or whether the item genuinely belonged to him.

Shin was arrested in 1989 after breaking into a home in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, with accomplices in March of that year, robbing the occupants and killing the homeowner. He was convicted of robbery resulting in death and sentenced to life in prison. On Jan. 20, 1997, he escaped from Busan Prison by sawing through the iron bars of a ventilation shaft in his cell's bathroom with a hacksaw, then spent two and a half years on the run across the country, committing more than 140 additional crimes. He was recaptured in July 1999 at an apartment in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province. Shin attempted to take his own life twice — once in August 2011 in a solitary cell at North Gyeongsang Province's Northern No. 1 Prison, and again in May 2023 at Daejeon Prison — and remains incarcerated.

If you are thinking about self-harm or suicide, dial the Suicide Prevention Hotline at 109, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Please request a translator for English-language services.