"If You're in a Hurry, Use Your Pants"...Martial Artist Forced Humiliating Acts and Bullied Fellow Inmates

Forced to perform humiliating acts and even massage
Court sentences 1 year imprisonment, citing lack of remorse

A man in his 30s who used his past experience as a mixed martial arts fighter to bully other inmates in a detention center was sentenced to prison.

According to a Yonhap News report on the 4th, Judge Lee Eun-ju of the Incheon District Court Criminal Division 14 sentenced Mr. A (33) to one year in prison on charges including assault. Mr. A was tried for repeatedly bullying and assaulting fellow inmates Mr. B (29) and Mr. C (25) at Incheon Detention Center from March 18 to May 28, 2021.

At the time, Mr. A flaunted his past as a mixed martial arts fighter before his incarceration, instilling fear in other inmates. He forced Mr. B and Mr. C to perform humiliating acts, where they had to lie face down holding their ears with both hands while shouting "Gwittul," and extend their hands forward as if stabbing with a weapon while shouting "Gangdo." Under Mr. A’s coercion, they even had to assume positions resembling sexual acts while lying face down on the floor.

Detention center. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The victim inmates also hit each other in the abdomen under Mr. A’s orders and were forced to join a workout club named "KCC" created by Mr. A, where they had to exercise against their will. Mr. B pleaded, "I want to stop exercising," but Mr. A threatened, "Get hit 10 times in the abdomen by other inmates and then quit."

For two months, Mr. B also served as Mr. A’s personal masseur. Whenever Mr. A said, "Hey, come here and give me a massage," Mr. B had to massage every part of Mr. A’s body for 20 minutes. Mr. B, who usually went to the bathroom every morning, was even threatened by Mr. A with, "If you go to the bathroom from now on, I’ll kill you. If it’s urgent, relieve yourself in your pants." One day, Mr. A called Mr. B and Mr. C over saying, "Hey, come here," and suddenly said, "I’ll knock you out pleasantly," then choked them with his legs. Although Mr. B and others complained, "It feels like blood isn’t flowing to the brain," Mr. A ignored them. As a result, the victims actually lost consciousness after being choked about 10 times with a grappling technique called a "choke," which involves strangling the opponent’s neck to block breathing or blood flow to the brain.

Eventually, Mr. A was prosecuted on charges of assault and coercion, and Mr. B and others testified in court. Mr. B said, "I was scared of Mr. A, so I had no choice but to continue the humiliating acts," and "I didn’t want to give massages, but I did as requested out of fear of being beaten." Mr. C recalled, "There was no one to protect us at Incheon Detention Center, so we were isolated," and "Mr. A bullied us by making others beat us if we didn’t obey."

However, Mr. A claimed, "The acts of making them lie down were just jokes, and I never made them hit each other," and "Mr. B gave massages voluntarily, and although I did knock someone out, the victims wanted it."

The judge stated, "The victims consistently testified about the circumstances during Mr. A’s crimes," and "Their statements were so detailed that they could not have been known without direct experience, and there is no reason to doubt their credibility." Regarding sentencing, the judge explained, "The defendant committed crimes against other inmates despite being confined in the detention center where he should have been reflecting on his actions," and "Considering the pain suffered by the victims and the defendant’s unreasonable excuses and lack of remorse."