Who Owns the Naturally Formed 'Malbeolzip'? ... Taken Silently, Mistaken for a Thief

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Seo-young] Two men who were convicted of theft for taking a wasp nest from another person's house eaves without the homeowner's permission were acquitted on appeal.

Last September, in Hongcheon-gun, Gangwon Province, Mr. A (59 years old) and Mr. B (60 years old) were prosecuted on charges of stealing a wasp nest worth about 200,000 won from under the eaves while Mr. C's house was vacant. At the first trial, they admitted to the crime and showed remorse, and although the court sentenced them guilty, it gave a suspended prison sentence considering that Mr. C did not wish to punish them.

However, Mr. A and others appealed, arguing that "a wasp nest is an object without an owner and therefore cannot be the subject of theft," claiming that the first trial's ruling, which recognized the wasp nest as Mr. C's property and found them guilty, was incorrect.

Accordingly, the Chuncheon District Court Criminal Division 1 (Chief Judge Kim Cheong-mi) announced today (the 10th) that it "overturned the original sentence of 8 months imprisonment and 2 years probation for Mr. A and Mr. B, who were charged with special theft, and acquitted them."

The court acknowledged that the wasp nest has economic value as it is traded as medicinal material but judged that it is difficult to consider the homeowner as having ownership of the wasp nest. The court cited as grounds that the wasp nest naturally formed under the eaves and that Mr. C had been aware of the wasp nest's existence for eight months before the incident but neglected it.

Furthermore, the court considered that the defendants stated during the investigation that they "did not know the wasp nest could be subject to ownership," concluding that there was no intent to steal. The court added, "The original judgment misinterpreted the legal principles regarding the object of special theft, which affected the verdict," and acquitted the defendants.