'Prison Heartthrob' Reflects Suddenly After Prosecutors' Appeal?..."Knife Fight Riot Post Does Not Mean No Remorse"

"Not Mocking the Ministry of Justice... Sorry for Causing Trouble"

A man in his 20s who was arrested for posting a stabbing threat online and later released on probation by the court’s leniency explained, “It’s not that I haven’t reflected,” after causing controversy by posting messages mocking public authority.

Earlier, Mr. A was prosecuted while in custody on charges of causing fear among an unspecified number of people by posting a stabbing threat and photos of a weapon on an online community around 6:56 p.m. last August in Chuncheon.

The prosecution sought a one-year prison sentence for Mr. A, but the first trial court considered that he had no prior criminal record except for a fine for a different type of crime and that there was no apparent intention to carry out the crime, sentencing him to eight months in prison with a two-year probation.

The photo is not related to any specific expression in the article.

However, after his release, Mr. A posted a review of his detention on an online community around 3 p.m. on the 26th, saying, “I came in for ‘threatening,’ and everyone said, ‘Ah~ a murder threat post,’ so I became popular,” and “I formed a brotherhood with someone who came in for a murder threat post.”

In response, the prosecution appealed the first trial court’s ruling, citing mockery of public authority. The Chuncheon District Prosecutors’ Office stated on the 31st, “We appealed considering that the crime caused about 20 police officers to be dispatched, obstructing official duties and wasting police resources, and that immediately after being released on probation, he posted that he was ‘popular in prison,’ mocking public authority.”

Mr. A posted an explanation on the online community after his posts sparked controversy as “mocking public authority.”

He said, “The gist of the post was that various things happened, and I wrote it with the intention that this would be my last post on DC Inside, but I never imagined it would become public,” adding, “It’s true that I wrote the post playfully, but it’s not that I haven’t reflected. I am sincerely reflecting, and except when writing this explanation, I have absolutely not been visiting online communities.”

Mr. A also said, “I am fulfilling the promises I made to the judge and have scheduled internet addiction treatment,” and added, “I really did not intend to mock the Ministry of Justice or boast about my time in detention. I am truly sorry to everyone for causing misunderstandings and controversy.”

Meanwhile, the prosecution and Mr. A are expected to engage in another legal battle over whether the sentence of probation given in the first trial was appropriate. Following the prosecution’s appeal, it is reported that Mr. A also filed an appeal on the same day, arguing that the original sentence was too harsh and unfair.