"Judiciary Is Not Stupid... I'm Not the Only One Who Testified," YouTuber Yang Ye-won Criticizes Malicious Commenters

YouTuber Yang Ye-won, who exposed the 'private photo shoot,' is seen entering the Western District Court in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the morning of January 9 last year for the sentencing trial of Choi Mo (46), the recruiter of photographers who was detained and prosecuted. She is responding to questions from the press. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] YouTuber Yang Ye-won (26) criticized netizens who left malicious comments on her, saying, "If you haven't been in that situation and experienced it, don't speak."

On the 14th of last month, Yang shared a photo containing malicious comments on her Instagram and made this statement.

According to the revealed photo, the netizen repeatedly left comments such as, "A cowardly lie to save one's image drove a person to death and caused an irreparable wound to the bereaved family," "You won't reflect on it, but you will surely be punished. You will reap what you sow," and "You should have become a decent human being first."

Yang opened up by saying, "The judiciary people are not stupid," and added, "I was investigated by the police and prosecutors several times for over 10 hours each time, and I testified more than 10 times in and out of the court."

She continued, "How many police officers, prosecutors, and judges reviewed and investigated my statements during the first trial, retrial, and appeal?" and said, "All those people never found anything strange, and all of it was recognized up to the Supreme Court, resulting in a guilty verdict without a single day reduced from the sentence."

She said, "Bereaved family? You say they drove an innocent person to death? Do you know how many women’s lives that man ruined?" and added, "There are several additional victims and more evidence that came out, and I was not the only one who testified."

She emphasized, "There were testimonies from additional victims, and even those who took photos came and testified. Yet, it is still a guilty verdict," and said, "Don't pretend to know when you don't."

Meanwhile, on August 8th of last year, the Supreme Court upheld the original sentence that sentenced a man in his 40s, who was tried for illegally leaking Yang’s photos and sexually harassing her, to prison.

The Supreme Court’s 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Park Sang-ok) confirmed the original sentence of 2 years and 6 months imprisonment for Choi Mo (45), who was detained and prosecuted on charges of forced sexual molestation and filming using a camera under the Special Act on Sexual Violence Crimes, ordering him to complete 80 hours of sexual violence treatment lectures and restricting employment at related institutions for 5 years.

The court stated, "There is no illegality in the original court’s judgment regarding the facts or in the misinterpretation of the law concerning the establishment of the crime of forced sexual molestation."