[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] A man in his 30s who forged official documents to deceive others into believing he had divorced after it was revealed that he married someone else while dating another person was sentenced to prison.
According to the legal community on the 3rd, Judge Park Hyun-sook of the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 22 sentenced Jo (36), who was indicted on charges of forgery and use of forged official documents, to six months in prison.
Jo was tried without detention until the sentencing but was taken into custody in court after receiving the sentence on the 28th of last month.
The court pointed out, "When Jo's crime was revealed, he asked A not to file a complaint and was more focused on covering up the crime than offering a sincere apology."
It added, "The documents Jo forged and altered are important papers with significant social credibility. Considering the motive, circumstances, and method of the crime, the nature of the offense is very serious, so a prison sentence is imposed."
While dating A, Jo registered his marriage to another woman and even had a son with her. After A found out about this, Jo pretended to have divorced his wife to continue dating A.
In January 2019, Jo forged a mutual divorce consent confirmation and altered the family relation certificate by removing his wife's name, then showed these two documents to A. Eventually, the forgery was discovered, and he was brought to trial.
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