20s extorted large sums using false rape testimony bait despite victim's ex-girlfriend's opposition

Incheon District Prosecutors' Office Indicts 20s on Perjury and Evidence Forgery Charges
Received 50 Million Won by Lying to Perpetrator

A man in his 20s who coerced false testimony from his girlfriend, a sexual assault victim, and even forged evidence, blinded by a large settlement, has been brought to trial. On the 19th, the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office indicted Mr. A and Mr. C last month on charges including subornation of perjury, perjury, and evidence forgery.

Incheon District Prosecutors' Office indicted Mr. A and Mr. C last month on charges including subornation of perjury, perjury, and evidence forgery.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

When Mr. B, a friend, was arrested for sexually assaulting his ex-girlfriend, Mr. A approached Mr. C, the current boyfriend of the girlfriend. Mr. A offered Mr. C "50 million won if you get the girlfriend to retract her statement." Blinded by money, Mr. C accepted the offer.

Mr. C received from Mr. A a place to practice the testimony and even a miniature voice recorder. Afterwards, he tried to persuade the girlfriend by saying, "Let's retract the statement by falsely reporting." However, the girlfriend insisted on not retracting her statement. In response, Mr. C sent a letter to the perpetrator Mr. B, who was in detention. He lied, saying, "I have a recording file of the girlfriend retracting her statement," and obtained 50 million won.

After receiving the money, Mr. C submitted an edited version of the recording file to the court. He also appeared in court and gave false testimony about the circumstances of the recording. However, these actions were revealed to be false through the prosecution’s victim investigation and mobile phone forensic analysis.

A total of 622 perjury offenders detected last year... a 25.7% increase compared to 2022

As in the previous case, those who attempted perjury but were caught by the prosecution reached 622 people in the past year alone. Compared to a year ago, this is an increase of over 20%, and the number of detected perjury offenders has steadily increased over the past three years. The prosecution explained that the number of detected perjury offenders has greatly increased since 2022, when the ‘Regulations on the Scope of Crimes for Prosecutors’ Investigation Initiation’ was revised, allowing prosecutors to directly investigate crimes that disrupt judicial order.

The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office stated that since perjury crimes can cause confusion in the judicial order by punishing innocent people or allowing criminals to evade punishment, they will thoroughly investigate and root out even the underlying forces behind such crimes.