Category: crime & punishment

Here is a name I haven’t heard from in a while that the Korean left is trying to rehabilitate, Han Myeong-sook:

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) is methodically moving to reinvent the political life of former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook, 76, who was sentenced to jail for two years for receiving money from the former CEO of a construction company in 2007 in return for favors. If the DP really attempts to rehabilitate such a convict, that’s a grave challenge to respect for the rule of law. Han, who served as prime minister in the Roh Moo-hyun administration (2003-2008), was an iconic figure representing the liberal camp.    
   
She was indicted, convicted and served a jail term after the Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s ruling against her. She was indicted without detention in July 2010 on charges of taking 900 million won ($731,400) from Han Man-ho, the CEO, who died after serving a prison term in 2018.   

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but there was far more evidence of corruption by Han Myeong-sook than by former President Park Geun-hye and she is likely going to spend the rest of her life in jail unless another conservative gets elected President.

Democratic Party advocates are claiming that Han is the “victim of the prosecution’s coercive investigation and the court’s abuse of power.” With the new reform bill the Democratic Party passed earlier in the year, its new investigation agency could be used to pressure judges to relook Han’s case. One of the criticism about the so called reforms was that the new investigation agency could be used to protect ruling party officials and attack political rivals.

It figures this guy would get no jail time after being convicted of corruption:

Busan’s former vice mayor for economic affairs Yoo Jae-soo was convicted of taking bribes but will avoid jail time.  
   
The Seoul Eastern District Court convicted Yoo of taking bribes from four executives of financial companies when he worked at the Financial Services Commission (FSC) from 2010 to 2018.   
   
The court handed down an 18-month suspended jail sentence and a 90 million won fine ($73,000). The court also ordered Yoo to pay the 42.21 million won he took in bribes. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but what is significant about this case is not so much the corruption, but that the former Moon administration Justice Minister Cho Kuk is being tried for abuse of power in 2017 when as then Blue House Senior Civil Affairs Secretary tried to shut down an investigation into Yoo’s suspected corruption.

This soldier’s commander must have gave himself a facepalm after getting the phone call about this:

Two people who live and work at Kadena Air Base are suspected of making off with nearly $65,000 in the armed robbery of a currency exchange shop on Okinawa.

The business, which isn’t far from Camp Foster’s front gate, was robbed by two mask-wearing perpetrators about 4 p.m. Tuesday, according to an Okinawa Police spokesman who spoke on a customary condition of anonymity.

One or both of the suspects went behind the shop’s counter while brandishing a knife-like object, threatened an employee and demanded money, the spokesman said. They ran out with $64,700 in Japanese and U.S. currency. No one was injured.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Cho Hyun-ah just can’t stay out of the news:

Former Korean Air vice president and “nut rage” heiress Cho Hyun-ah was fined 30 million won ($2,460) for assaulting her husband but cleared of abusing her twin children by throwing a spoon at them and verbally abusing them.

Judge In Jin-sup made the ruling recently, the Seoul Central District Court said on Thursday.

While it’s not yet known if Cho will appeal, her husband, surnamed Kim, has appealed, arguing the court’s decision on the child abuse was wrong. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but she supposedly tried to choke the husband and then threw a Tablet PC at him.

This is a morbid story:

An obstetrician has been sentenced to three years and six months in prison for killing a baby who “burst out crying” during abortion procedures.

The Seoul Central District Court on Friday convicted the doctor, 65, surnamed Yun, of killing a 34-week-old baby and suspended Yun’s medical license for three years.

“Medical staff who participated in the operation have consistently said they heard the baby crying,” a three-judge panel of the court said in a statement. “It is clear that the doctor killed the baby, who was born alive.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but this got me thinking what happens in a similar situation in the U.S. From FactCheck.org I found out that a similar situation in the U.S. would be prosecutable. However, what abortion doctors can do is deny medical care to keep the child alive:

A spokesman for Sasse told us the bill is aimed at “passive” situations in which there’s a “backing away” from providing medical interventions for a baby born alive. He cited the testimony of an OB-GYN doctor in the Gosnell case who said that if a baby were born alive as a result of an abortion procedure, the baby would “eventually pass.”

FactCheck.org

You can read more at the link.

Considering that CID says there is no threat to the public than how is foul play still being considered?:

The recent deaths of two American soldiers were not connected to each other or the coronavirus, but foul play has not been completely ruled out as investigations are ongoing, the military said.

The 2nd Infantry Division soldiers — Pfc. Marissa Jo Gloria and Spc. Clay Welch — died in their barracks rooms on Camp Humphreys over two consecutive days earlier this month.

Seeking to stave off speculation amid the coronavirus pandemic, officials took the unusual step of immediately announcing that neither soldier had been ill nor exhibited symptoms of the respiratory disease. (……..)

“At this point in both of the investigations, foul play is not suspected, but we have not completely ruled it out while we conduct thorough investigations,” he said.

“I can also tell you there is no danger to the public or the Camp Humphreys community in regard to these deaths,” he added. “No further information will be released at this time to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigations.”

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Here is an update on the bizarre video sex case in South Korea:

A man suspected of blackmailing dozens of victims, including minors, into performing violent sex acts and selling the videos in mobile chat rooms was handed over to the prosecution on Wednesday for further investigation.

At least 74 people, including 16 underage girls, are known to have been exploited in the case, widely known as the “Nth room case,” in which prime suspect Cho Ju-bin allegedly lured victims into taking photos and later coerced them into performing more gruesome sex acts.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency sent Cho’s case to the prosecution on charges including violation of the act on the protection of children and youth against sex offenses.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it looks like someone might have roughed up Cho a bit judging by the picture.

This is a weird case because the victims were allegedly being extorted digitally to do sex acts with no threats of physical force:

President Moon Jae-in called Monday for a thorough investigation into shocking sex crimes against women, including underage girls, in which group chat rooms of the Telegram messenger service were used.

He described the acts of the offenders in the so-called Nth room case as “cruel” behavior that destroyed the lives of victims and said he “feels sympathetic” to the “justifiable” public fury over it.

At least 74 women, including 16 minors, were sexually abused and exploited for several months, as they were virtually enslaved with threats of spreading photos of their naked bodies, according to police. They were forced to photograph or film themselves doing sexual acts, even grotesque ones. Those were shared with a host of viewers in the chat rooms. The number of members, who paid money for the materials, reportedly reaches 260,000.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

The ruling left-wing Democratic Party of Korea is trying to silence a liberal university professor critical of their recent actions:

Lim, a professor at Korea University’s Center for Korean History, contributed a column to the Kyunghyang Shinmun on Jan. 29, urging the public to vote for parties other than the DP to hold it accountable for the current political tumult. 

Citing an internal power struggle in the criminal justice system and political strife between the ruling and opposition parties, Lim wrote that public loathing of politics is deepening. 

“The Liberty Korea Party [LKP] is somewhat responsible, but the DP is more responsible,” she wrote, “because it is serving the administration’s interests rather than the people’s desires, although it proudly defines itself as an administration backed by candlelight protesters.” 

At the end of her column, Lim urged voters to “tame the political parties” in the upcoming April general elections. “Let’s create political parties that are trying to satisfy the people,” she wrote. “I, therefore, propose, ‘Let’s vote for parties except for the DP.’” 

On Feb. 5, the DP asked the prosecution to investigate Lim and two Kyunghyang Shinmun officials, saying the column violated election laws. While the DP did not publicize that action, Lim said on Facebook Thursday that she was the subject of a criminal complaint.

“I recently got a phone call from the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office that a complaint was submitted against me,” Lim said in an exclusive interview with the JoongAng Ilbo on Thursday. “I was accused of conducting illegal campaign activity before the official campaign period and violating a ban on encouraging the voters to cast ballots [for a specific political party]. The complainant was DP Chairman Lee.” 

Lim, a modern history professor who specializes in student activism, did not hide her disappointment at the DP. “I am baffled,” she said. “The DP won power through a democratization movement. The key to democratization movements is freedom of speech. They used to fight for such freedoms, but they demanded a probe against me because I criticized them. It is shameful that the DP is using the word democratic in its name.”

Joong Ang Ilbo

Considering the Moon administration has put journalists in jail for reporting accurate information, why Professor Lim be surprised she had a complaint made against her? The only reason the complaint is being dropped is because she is a left-wing activist. If she was a conservative professor I doubt the complaint would have been dropped.

I do have to wonder if Professor Lim will come out in support of the journalists that were jailed?