Gang Fight Among Gangs Starting with "Why Are You Acting Like You Know?"... 3 Main Perpetrators Sentenced to Prison in First Trial

3 out of 20 People Receive First Trial Verdict After Over 4 Years

A gang member affiliated with the Jeonju and Gunsan crime organizations who engaged in a brawl in the heart of Jeonju city center, Jeollabuk-do, has been sentenced to prison.

On the 20th, the Jeonju District Court Criminal Division 6 (Presiding Judge Park Jeong-ryeon) announced that A (27), who was indicted for violating the Act on the Punishment of Violent Crimes, etc. (joint assault), was sentenced to one year in prison. A was also indicted for habitual assault and received an additional sentence of one year and six months. Furthermore, B (32), a Gunsan-area gang member indicted for special assault, and B’s friend C (32), indicted for aiding special assault, were sentenced to four months and eight months in prison, respectively.

On the early morning of November 3, 2019, A and others were indicted for engaging in a brawl in an alley in Jeonju city. On the day of the incident, a Jeonju gang member struck a Gunsan gang member about ten times with fists and feet all over his face and body because the Gunsan member acted as if he knew him, which upset him. A, who was at the scene, incited the fight by saying, "If you’re not their senior, then hit them." About ten Jeonju gang members surrounded two Gunsan gang members and threatened them.

The Gunsan gang member who fled the scene called his senior and reported, "Brother, I was beaten up by the Jeonju guys." Upon learning that a fellow gang member had been assaulted, B gathered eight gang members and moved to Jeonju. B also called his friend C and asked him to "detain the guys who assaulted our gang members at the bar."

Eventually, the two gangs confronted each other, and C suggested, "Let’s settle this by fighting two against two." Following C’s suggestion, the two gangs moved to an alley in Jeonju city, exchanged harsh words, and then a Gunsan gang member punched A in the face. The fight escalated rapidly, turning the scene into chaos. Investigations revealed that B and other Gunsan gang members threatened A and the Jeonju gang members with baseball bats, wooden sticks, and glass bottles.

The prosecution indicted 20 gang members from Jeonju and Gunsan involved in the assault, and among them, 17 received sentences ranging from probation to one year in prison depending on their level of involvement. The first trial verdict for A and two others, who committed additional crimes, was handed down this month, more than four years after the incident. Notably, A was also accused of frequently harassing and assaulting a level 3 intellectually disabled inmate while serving time at Jeonju Prison for injury charges in 2021. It was also confirmed that A assaulted acquaintances multiple times in February and March of last year.

The court stated regarding A, "The defendant was sentenced to prison for violent crimes but committed violence based on the organization’s prestige in places where many people gather during the recidivism period. Such acts threaten the social community and the maintenance of legal order and public peace. Although the defendant admits to the crimes, a prison sentence is unavoidable." Regarding B, the court said, "Despite having already received a confirmed guilty verdict for special assault against some victims, B denies the crimes with implausible excuses and shows no remorse, making a prison sentence unavoidable." As for C, the court explained, "Without the defendant’s aiding actions, it is highly likely that this violent crime, in which the gangs assaulted each other based on their organizational prestige, would not have occurred, so the defendant’s culpability is not light."