'Welcome to Video' Son Jung-woo Will Not Be Extradited to the US

Court: "Not a Get-Out-of-Jail-Free Card... Must Be Punished Domestically"

Operator Son Jeong-woo of the world's largest child sexual exploitation material site 'Welcome to Video' / Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] "Order. The criminal Son Jeong-woo shall not be extradited to the requesting country, the United States of America."

The Seoul High Court Criminal Division 20 (Chief Judge Kang Young-soo) on the morning of the 6th issued a decision to deny the extradition of Son Jeong-woo (24), the operator of the world's largest child sexual exploitation site "Welcome to Video." The court stated, "It is difficult to conclude that the criminal must be extradited solely based on the need for strict punishment of international sexual crimes and the circumstances of eradicating sexual exploitation crimes and international money laundering," and added, "Considering the extradition treaty and legal interpretations, it is deemed preferable for the Republic of Korea to exercise its authority to impose criminal punishment."

Before announcing the decision on this case, the court said, "The reason this case has attracted attention is that child sexual exploitation crimes are internationally condemned as crimes against humanity, yet appropriate and effective criminal punishment has not been achieved for the criminal so far," and "This court also agrees with the argument that the criminal should be sent to the United States to be severely punished and justice realized." However, the court added, "As acknowledged by the requesting prosecutor during the trial process, the purpose of the criminal extradition system is not to send the criminal to a place where they can be punished more severely," and "In this case, the Republic of Korea, as a sovereign state, can proactively exercise authority over the criminal."

The court further emphasized, "The criminal and his lawyer have stated that even if a heavy sentence is imposed for the crime of concealing criminal proceeds in the Republic of Korea, they will accept the punishment willingly," and "We hope the criminal will actively cooperate in the upcoming investigation and trial process and receive just punishment. This decision does not grant immunity to the criminal."

Son Jeong-woo was indicted for selling child sexual exploitation materials through the dark web from July 2015 to March 2018 and was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison by our court last year. He completed his sentence on April 27. However, since the U.S. Department of Justice requested extradition last April for nine charges including money laundering of criminal proceeds in the United States in 2018, he has not been released and has been undergoing extradition review since May.

This extradition review was conducted only regarding Son Jeong-woo's money laundering charges. Charges such as child pornography, for which he was punished by our court, were excluded from the scope of punishment. The extradition review is a single-instance process with no appeal. With the court's final decision to deny extradition on this day, Son Jeong-woo will immediately proceed with release procedures.