Soldier Claims "Forced to Arm Wrestle Unwillingly"
Company Commander Refutes, "I Was Actually Losing"
Military Prosecutors Decide Not to Prosecute, Saying "Hard to See as Coercion"
An accident occurred in a military unit where a soldier’s arm was broken while arm wrestling at the commander’s request. However, the military prosecution decided not to indict, and the soldier filed a petition for reconsideration with the court after discharge.
In February of this year, Private First Class Lee, who was serving in an Army unit in Gangwon Province, suffered a fracture of the right humerus while arm wrestling at the suggestion of Captain Kim, the company commander.
The following month, Lee filed a complaint against Captain Kim with the Army Investigation Unit, accusing him of negligent injury. He also requested that the charge of coercion be considered, stating, “The company commander pressured me to arm wrestle by using his command authority.”
Lee’s attorney argued that Lee, who was studying in a sports-related department, had been extremely cautious about injuries after enlisting, but the company commander, who liked arm wrestling, continuously pressured him. Lee, who had been avoiding it, reluctantly participated in the unwanted arm wrestling on the day of the incident and sustained the fracture, which disrupted his plans after discharge. Lee was discharged last August.
However, Captain Kim’s side denied the allegations, stating, “There was no coercion to arm wrestle.” Personnel from the unit testified during the military prosecution’s investigation that “there was no atmosphere of coercion to arm wrestle at the time, and Lee did not clearly express refusal.”
Captain Kim’s side also added that Lee’s fracture occurred while Lee was actually in a dominant position during the arm wrestling. They argued that it is unreasonable to assume the fracture happened because Captain Kim forcibly pressed down on Lee with excessive strength.
The military prosecution ruled in August that “it is difficult to see that Captain Kim coerced arm wrestling, there was no foul play during the match, and there is no evidence that he violated his duty of care and caused injury by negligence,” and decided not to indict Captain Kim due to lack of charges.
The unit also did not take any disciplinary or personnel actions against Captain Kim. The Army explained, “If this had been an official unit event, it would have been considered negligence in unit management, but in this case, it does not fall under the disciplinary standards.”
In response, Lee filed a petition for reconsideration with the Seoul High Court, claiming that the military prosecution’s decision not to indict was unfair and requesting a judgment on whether to proceed with prosecution.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
