South Korea Investigates Discrepancy in Prison Ammunition Records

South Korea's justice ministry said Saturday it has launched an investigation after receiving reports that 100 rounds of live ammunition went missing from a prison in the central city of Daejeon. The ministry discovered the discrepancy during a five-day inspection of the facility that began Monday.

Officials found that the actual number of rounds kept at the prison's armory differed from the number recorded in the ledger.

The missing rounds were 9 millimeter bullets used in hand guns, the ministry said. It remained unclear whether the rounds actually went missing or whether the number in the ledger was recorded incorrectly. Authorities plan to investigate when and how the rounds went missing and whether there were any violations of regulations.

The ministry also plans to conduct an inspection of all correction facilities in the country and prepare measures to prevent recurrences of such incidents. The Ministry of Justice building is located in Gwacheon, south of Seoul.