"Recently Discharged Soldier" Deceived by Minor, Gukbap Restaurant Suspended... "Check ID Even If They Look Old"

"Due to the mistake of believing the lie of a minor claiming to be a soldier who just completed military service, the business will be suspended for a while."

A heartbreaking story has been shared about a gukbap (soup with rice) restaurant whose owner and staff lost their livelihoods because customers who deceived them by ordering alcoholic beverages while pretending to be minors.

[Photo by Online Community]

According to an online community on the 7th, a notice posted at a bean sprout gukbap restaurant located in Sanbon-dong, Gunpo-si, Gyeonggi-do has become a hot topic. The restaurant blocked its entrance with yellow tape and attached a yellow notice.

The notice, apparently written by the owner of the restaurant in Gunpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, states, "From now on, I will work on building more experience so that I do not trust faces that look old and will thoroughly check IDs."

It also included a warning message directed at the minors who caused the business suspension. The restaurant said, "To the minors who came last November, lied, and have not been punished: thanks to you, five breadwinners have lost their livelihoods."

It continued, "You may be immature now and not think much of it, but I hope that when you grow older and truly become adults, you will remember the mistakes you made," expressing a bitter sentiment.

Netizens responded to the post with comments such as "Those who were deceived should also be held responsible," "Someone I know had to close their business after being suspended in a similar way," and "There should be a way to compensate for damages even if they are minors."

[Photo by Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, Article 44 of the Food Sanitation Act states that providing alcoholic beverages to youths results in an administrative penalty of a 60-day business suspension upon the first offense. The suspension period increases to 180 days for the second offense, and the business license is revoked upon the third offense.

As an exemption clause, it is stipulated that "if a food service business operator is not prosecuted or is given a suspended sentence because they did not know the person was a youth due to forged or stolen ID, administrative penalties are waived."

Previously, the court ruled that business suspension is justified even when restaurant owners were deceived into selling alcohol to minors who were accompanied by adults or who used forged IDs.