Man Intentionally Extends Foot as Vehicle Approaches in Alley...Netizens Call It "Self-Harm Extortion"

Lawyer Han Moon-chul: "Punishment is realistically difficult"

A man is deliberately extending his foot toward a slow-moving vehicle. Photo by YouTube channel 'Han Moon-cheol TV' screen capture.

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Outrage has erupted after a man was caught deliberately sticking out his foot toward a slow-moving vehicle on a narrow alleyway.

On the 28th, a video titled "While passing through a narrow alley, someone suddenly slyly stuck out one foot onto the road. I slowed down and avoided it, but in such cases, is it possible to be punished for attempted self-harm extortion?" was uploaded on the YouTube channel 'Han Moon-cheol TV.'

According to informant A, the incident occurred around 7 p.m. on the 21st in an alley in Jung-gu, Seoul. In the black box footage released by A, a man suddenly sticks out his foot as A’s car approaches. Seeing this, A slowed the car and avoided the man.

A said, "While driving slowly, a person was standing and watching the car, and when the car approached, he slyly stuck out one foot right in front," adding, "I noticed it and slowed down even more to avoid him."

He continued, "This person kept watching the car as it passed by and kept sticking out his foot," and added, "Since I avoided him well and passed by, I didn’t get out to fight or anything."

He asked, "In such cases, is it possible to report it as attempted self-harm extortion? I think such cases might be quite common, so what is the proper way to respond?"

In response, one lawyer said, "Practically, punishment seems difficult," but explained, "However, if an accident actually occurs and the insurance company is notified, that moment becomes punishable because it is obvious that it was done intentionally." He added, "There are all kinds of people, so when there are people on the road, you should stop completely until you can fully move aside," and said, "I don’t understand what they are trying to do."

Another lawyer said, "If the man in the video was not joking and acted with genuinely bad intentions, it is a preparatory crime. It is a preparatory act for insurance fraud or extortion. When there are provisions to punish preparatory crimes separately, punishment can be applied even before the commencement of execution," but pointed out, "However, fraud and extortion crimes do not apply preparatory crime provisions."

Netizens who saw the video responded with comments such as, "Shouldn’t this be reported to the police first? I’m worried this might happen to me too," "Since he deliberately stuck out his leg while watching the car come, he should be punished regardless of an accident. It’s just unfortunate that there is no practical way to punish him," "It’s not something done unknowingly; deliberately sticking out a foot when a car is coming should definitely be punishable," and "It should be reported as self-harm extortion."