[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] A man in his 60s who falsely accused his cousin of trying to take over a 165㎡ (about 50 pyeong) piece of land located in Gangnam, Seoul, was sentenced to prison.
According to the legal community on the 22nd, Judge Kim Seong-dae of the Criminal Division 6 at the Seoul Western District Court recently sentenced A (62) to one year in prison with a two-year probation for false accusation charges.
A's older sister B (deceased) had registered a 324㎡ (about 98 pyeong) mixed-use land in Segok-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, which she actually owned, by dividing it equally between A and two other younger siblings in 2005. While battling cancer, B borrowed 70 million won for medical expenses from cousin C (70) in 2007, at which time C established a mortgage on the Segok-dong land. A attempted to sell the land to receive basic living subsidies but was hindered by C's mortgage, so in 2013, A sold her share to C.
Later, sister B passed away. Thinking that the land value would rise in the future, A decided to create grounds to reclaim the land and sought to have cousin C punished. Accordingly, in 2011, A accused C of conspiracy to murder, claiming he tried to kill B to seize the Segok-dong land. After B's death, from 2017 to 2019, A filed four false complaints with charges including fraud, requesting prosecution against C.
However, investigations revealed no such charges against C, and the prosecution dismissed all cases. After filing the fifth complaint, A was prosecuted for false accusation. The court pointed out, "Despite multiple complaints all resulting in dismissal, the defendant repeatedly committed false accusations, showing poor criminal intent and consistently denied the charges in court."
However, the court considered favorable factors such as A having no prior record of punishment exceeding fines and currently receiving psychiatric treatment.
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