'What Did the Virgin Mary Statue Do Wrong?' A 20s Job Seeker Throws Stones to Vent Employment Stress

Busan Gijang Police Station, Man Arrested for Damaging Virgin Mary Statue Worth 5 Million Won

The statue of the Virgin Mary at Busan Gijang Cathedral was damaged by a stone thrown by a man in his 20s who was under employment stress. [Image source=Busan Police Agency]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The incident in which a statue of the Virgin Mary was destroyed and the culprit fled from a church in Busan (reported in the January 11 online edition) has been revealed to be the act of a man in his 20s who is a job seeker.

The man was found to have thrown stones at the statue of the Virgin Mary to vent his employment stress.

Busan Gijang Police Station announced on the 13th that they apprehended suspect A, who damaged the statue of the Virgin Mary at Gijang Catholic Church in Gijang-gun, Busan, at around 4:21 p.m. on January 7.

Immediately after the incident, the police formed a dedicated team and analyzed about 30 CCTV cameras around the scene to track suspect A's movements. On the 12th at around 7:30 p.m., suspect A was voluntarily taken from his home on charges of special property damage and is currently under investigation.

Suspect A admitted to the crime, stating that after graduating from university and being unable to find a job, he was under stress and sought an outlet, breaking into the church yard and throwing a large stone he had prepared in advance to damage the statue of the Virgin Mary. The damaged statue is known to be worth approximately 5 million won.

A man in his 20s, who was stressed about employment, stood in front of the Virgin Mary statue at Busan Gijang Catholic Church on the afternoon of the 7th. He threw a large stone he had prepared in advance, damaging the statue. [Image source=Busan Police Agency]