"If a child commits a crime, parents should ensure they are punished," says late Son Jeong-min's father, mentioning 'family exemption'

"Helplessness of Being Unable to Do Anything for Jeongmin"

A photo of the late Son Jeong-min released by Son Hyun on the night of the 10th. Photo by Son Hyun, captured from his blog.

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Son Hyun (50), the father of the late Son Jeongmin (22), who went missing and was found dead at Banpo Hangang Park in Seoul, expressed his longing for his son.

On the afternoon of the 10th, Son posted a blog entry titled "The Boundary Between Morality and Law," saying, "As betrayals from people I trusted continued, I became depressed. When I got off the subway after work, it started to rain. Suddenly, tears burst out like a flood."

He continued, "Feeling powerless because I couldn't do anything for Jeongmin, I had to compose myself before going home, so I quickly called my younger sister," adding, "After crying it out, I felt a little better."

He said, "I entered the house looking fine. It's a look I could never show my wife," and added, "My wife, who is struggling, can cry, but I can't do that in front of her. She doesn't check my blog much, so it's okay."

Then Son mentioned, "Among the things I've heard recently, I realized how ignorant I was about the law," referring to 'Chin-jok Sang-do-rye (親族相盜例)' (the family exemption clause).

Chin-jok Sang-do-rye (Article 328 of the Criminal Act) is a legal provision stating that "property crimes (embezzlement, breach of trust, fraud, theft, etc.) between direct blood relatives, spouses, cohabiting relatives, and cohabiting family members are exempt from punishment, and for property crimes between other relatives, prosecution can only be initiated upon complaint (defined as a complaint offense)." Accordingly, crimes such as obstruction of exercise of rights, theft and robbery, fraud and extortion, embezzlement and breach of trust committed between relatives can be exempt from punishment.

Seoul Banpo Hangang Park memorial site for the late Jeongmin Son. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Explaining Chin-jok Sang-do-rye, he said, "Even if a child commits a wrongdoing, parents who help the offender escape or destroy evidence cannot be punished under this law," criticizing, "This is so different from how I have lived until now."

He continued, "I thought it was a parent's duty not to hide their child's crimes but to make them face punishment, but our law says parents cannot be held accountable for helping their offending children," and added, "I don't know if I am ignorant or if the law is archaic."

Additionally, he shared several photos of Jeongmin during his lifetime, concluding with, "People who say they saw Jeongmin in their dreams send me emails, but none have come to me."

Meanwhile, the police are investigating the circumstances of Jeongmin's disappearance, including his whereabouts on the day he went missing, his shoes, and how a sanitation worker came into possession of Jeongmin's friend A's mobile phone, to clarify the case details.